Two Sides of the Same Coin
by RyoKushei
Summary: Ganondorf is gone, but Hyrule is far from peace. Strange things are happening in the castle that are out of Princess Zelda's control. And the when a demon from the past tries to wrest control of Hyrule from Zelda, Link must do everything he can to protect his land and his princess. Post-Twilight Princess. Link x Zelda. Rated T for mild language and because I'm paranoid.
1. Prologue - Endings and Beginnings

_Hey all, nice to see you all again. It's been a while, hasn't it?_

 _A word before we get into the story: this is a project I want to start to clear my writer's block for Rift of Time. I wanted to create my own sequel to Twilight Princess, and while Rift of Time is that sequel, I feel like I also want to write another sequel, one dealing strictly with the Link from Twilight Princess, and no other worlds of Zelda. That said, it will take place after Twilight Princess. This chapter, the prologue, begins with the concluding events of Twilight Princess but continues with an artistic license, if you will. Imagination for the win! XD_

 _Hopefully, I'll be able to finish Rift of Time soon. But until then, enjoy this story!_

* * *

Sparks flew as their swords rang. With each clang of metal on metal, blades of grass would momentarily catch fire beneath their feet.

Link howled as Ganondorf managed a lucky slash across his arm. He did his best to ignore the pain as he held up his shield to defend against another swing to his midsection. Link could tell that his adversary was done toying with him. Ganondorf was actually trying to kill him.

Link rolled around Ganondorf and leapt into the air, slashing his back. Ganondorf roared, and Link wasn't quite sure if it was due to anger or pain; if he had to guess, it would have been a combination of both. The Great Gerudo King of Evil stared daggers at Link and charged straight at Link, Sage's Sword raised high in the air, poised to run it straight through Link's abdomen. Link fearlessly threw down his shield and gripped the hilt of the Master Sword with both hands, as hard as he could. He braced himself as Ganondorf was 20, 15, 10 meters away from him. When the Gerudo did reach him, Link held the Blade of Evil's Bane alongside his chest, anticipating the upcoming blade lock if the move he was preparing to do actually worked.

It did, of course.

Ganondorf was halted suddenly at the force of Link's sword. Link grinned. He could see that Ganondorf's strength was failing him. If he could just...get...closer...

Link pushed with all the strength left inside him against the Gerudo King's sword. Ganondorf, although it was obvious that he was also pushing as hard as he could, was slowly pushed back as Link strained to shove Ganondorf down to the ground. His arms hurt. It would have been oh so easy to just stop fighting. To just accept defeat and allow Ganondorf to kill him on the spot. After all, he was tired of working himself to the bone for Hyrule's benefit. What had he got out of it thus far? Nothing, save an uncomfortable green tunic and a fancy sword, and some neat gadgets here and there. But then he thought of Zelda. What would she gain from his death?

She would die too, no doubt. He _couldn't_ let that happen. Even if Hyrule's protector was killed, it needed its Princess more than anything.

With that last thought, Link found new strength. Just enough to push Ganondorf's sword out of his hands and leave him dumbfounded for a few seconds. Link took advantage of this and performed a spin attack on the Gerudo's midsection. The force of the attack knocked Ganondorf to the ground and left his weak point spot - a bright scar on his abdomen - completely exposed. Link hefted the sword in his hand, adjusting his grip, and ran toward the Gerudo at full speed. The Triforce mark on his right hand resonated like crazy as he sprung himself off the ground, high into the air. He twisted his sword upside down so the blade's tip was pointed straight at Ganondorf's scar. And as he began to fall, he held on tight to the Blade of Evil's bane. _You won't survive this execution_ , he thought.

The Master Sword plunged deep into Ganondorf's stomach. Link took his hands off the sword and stepped back, next to where Princess Zelda was now standing. Ganondorf slowly stood up, staggering as he tried to take several steps toward the Hero and Princess. Link wasn't going to let that happen.

Fortunately, he didn't need to.

Ganondorf halted and coughed into his arm. When he lowered it, his arm was a bright Crimson, his own blood sparkling in the twilight. "Incompetent fools!" he bellowed. "Do not think this ends here. The history of Light and Shadow will be written in blood!" He held up his right hand, the back of it facing Link and Zelda. His Triforce mark was resonating, but very faintly. After a few moments, it disappeared completely. Ganondorf stared at his own hand in disbelief, then threw his head back and screamed in rage.

At that particular moment, Link had a vision. He didn't know what caused it, or why he needed it, but he saw it nonetheless. It was a grotesque vision of Zant's neck snapping, which Link supposed symbolized the end of Ganondorf's power. He shuddered. It wasn't something he wanted to remember.

Ganondorf coughed up more blood, took a deep breath, staggered and gasped before his eyes turned white. It was like his pupils disappeared completely from his eyes. His body crumpled to the ground with a loud _crack_. The Great King of Evil was dead.

Link approached Ganondorf's body and pulled the Master Sword out of his midsection. He wiped the blood off of the blade with the grass, and sheathed it quietly. Although he enjoyed the battle, he hated more than anything its aftermath. And while Ganondorf certainly did many great evils to Hyrule, Link never wanted to be the one to have to kill him, especially not after losing...her.

"I know Midna's loss is painful, Link," he heard Princess Zelda say behind him. "I know what a dear friend she was to you. I... I am sorry."

Link knew there was nothing he could have done to save her. He just didn't want it to hurt so much. If he was truly honest with himself, he might have said that he even loved her. None of it mattered anymore. She was gone.

And then, as if his eyes were playing tricks on him, Link saw Midna weakly trudging up the nearby hill. At least, it looked a _lot_ like Midna. He saw himself moving across the field but didn't feel his feet carrying him. He saw as he got closer that yes, it was indeed Midna. But it wasn't the Midna he knew. It was a tall, beautiful, much less cocky and sarcastic Midna. Goddesses, she was beautiful. Link felt his jaw drop at the sight of her.

"What?" She said with her usual smirk. "Say something!" She paused before she said with a small giggle, "Am I so beautiful that you have no words left?"

Link smiled the widest smile he'd ever done in his whole life.

* * *

Link returned to Ordon the next day. After a long year of adventuring, he was ready to return to a nice, quiet, provincial life as a ranch hand. With him he brought a carriage with the children, led by Colin and himself. The young boy sat on a little pony next to Epona, with Link's old Ordon Sword and Shield strapped to his back. He'd matured so much in the past year. Link knew Rusl would be proud. In the carriage sat Malo, Talo, Beth, and Luda, who was sent by Renado to ensure they got home safely. Link had objected to this, feeling a little offended Renado didn't trust him with his friends' lives, but the shaman assured him it was "just a precaution should anything happen to him or Colin," who had apparently been training with the sword with the local Gorons ever since Link had saved Darbus from the power of the fused shadow. Ilia rode on Epona with Link the same way Zelda had done the day before.

When the makeshift caravan returned to the small rural village, all of the townspeople greeted them with eagerness. The parents were all relieved to once again have their children back, Mayor Bo especially. The Mayor was also glad to have Link back as well, and asked Link after getting him settled back into his house to talk with him later. Link said he would and proceeded to follow the Mayor back to the town hall, which doubled as Bo and Ilia's house.

About halfway down the path to the rest of the village, Link heard sudden footsteps, followed by a scream of, "MR. LINK! WAAAAAAAIT!" The postman ran up to Link with short, light breaths and when he finally reached Link, said, "Ah, Mr. Link! I have a letter for you! Two letters, in fact! One of them is from Mr. Fyer from Lake Hylia. And the other is from Princess Zelda herself! You must be pretty important to get a letter from her majesty!" Link gaped and grabbed the letter after the postman barely had any time to take it out of his bag. He stared at Princess Zelda's own signature at the top of the page before reading its contents. He dropped the letter in shock.

Link stepped back, mounted Epona, and rushed away swiftly. He didn't even look back as Mayor Bo called his name. He needed to see the princess.

* * *

Link burst into the castle courtyard, where Zelda stood mournfully. Regret in his heart and anger on his face, he marched up to her. He bowed to her out of respect, though it was respect for tradition. Not her. Oh, no. He had no respect for her whatsoever. Who did she think she was, allowing Midna to leave the Light Realm and not even tell him until she was gone? Link stood angrily.

Zelda looked at him in tears. Link immediately felt awful. His sorrow had clouded his judgment. Zelda was just as distraught at Midna's departure as he was. It wasn't her fault Midna left without regard to how Link felt. If anything, Link realized Midna was probably just trying to save Link the heartbreak of her leave.

Still, she could've at least said goodbye.

Zelda's sobs were growing louder and louder, and Link put an arm on her shoulder in sympathy. She buried her face in his chest, and he put both his arms around her, trying his best to comfort her best he could. He felt like he should've said something, but no words would have helped Hyrule's princess. He felt like he could have burst into tears at any moment himself. He felt horrible for being angry at Zelda when she was obviously devastated as much as him. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair for either of them.

They stood there, princess and hero, long into the afternoon.

When the sun began to set, Link escorted Zelda inside, one arm around her and the other waving away the dozens of castle officials who needed to see Zelda at that particular moment. Great. The one time Zelda needed a small bit of time to herself, of course people needed to see her. Didn't the Princess of Hyrule get even a small break here or there? Couldn't they see that _she was in tears_? Hyrule's citizens could be so damn insensitive, he finally decided.

Eventually Ashei, who had been talking with some other soldiers at that point, jogged up to Link and offered to help him and Zelda get away from the crowd. "I'll get them away from you. Just take care of the princess, yeah?" she said with her usual smirk. Link thanked her and brought Zelda through the Castle's corridors and into her chambers.

"Thank you, Link. For everything," she said in between sobs. Link bowed humbly to her, and she said to him, "Link, you need not be formal with me right now. You are truly the only friend I have at this point."

Now that was weird. He had barely known her as a human for a day, and she was already declaring him her closest friend? Not that he was complaining, of course; it was a great honor indeed to be a friend of the Princess. But in such a short amount of time?

Zelda interrupted his thoughts with, "Link, I would feel better if you stayed with me tonight." Link's eyes grew wide in panic and she quickly said, "Not like that. Physical intimacy is something I'd rather save for marriage. I just would feel safer if you were here with me for a while. Does that make sense?" Link nodded and she sighed in relief before sitting down on her bed. "You'be been through so much in the past year. I'm sorry you had to go through everything on Hyrule's — on my — behalf. Is there anything I can do to help?" she asked, and Link shook his head, reassuring her that he would be fine. She smiled, and he smiled back. It was hard for him to believe that only hours before he was practically committing treason with his thoughts. Now he was in the Princess's own personal living quarters, conversing with her as if they had known each other for years. Well, then he guessed they had, in past lives. But not like this. This connection they felt to each other was different. Or at least, the connection he felt to her. He had a feeling she felt it, too. It was...special.

Link felt himself sit down on the bed beside Zelda. He gazed into her chocolate brown eyes and moved his face ever so slowly closer to hers. His heart pounded as he put his lips to hers, and her eyes bulged in surprise. But she didn't shove him away, and Link knew she was enjoying this kiss as much as he was. It somehow felt right, to him at least. Like it was almost his destiny to be with Zelda. Whatever affection he'd felt for Midna or Ilia in the past was almost tripled in that one moment, in their embrace.

Zelda finally pulled away and said, "Link, how dare you kiss the princ- the, the princess of-" she stuttered, staring blankly at him before finally saying, "Oh, forget it. I love you."

She kissed him again.


	2. Chapter 1 - A Bad Excuse for a Goodbye

_Hey all!_

 _So I'm hoping that I can upload a chapter maximum every two weeks, but we'll see. School can be a hindrance at times and it's never fun to have a ton of assignments. But anyway, onto the acknowledgments._

 _Thanks so much to HawkstarInHyrule and Chameleon Eyes for their kind reviews of this story, and also to anyone else who followed/favorited this story or any of my other stories. You know who you are. :D_

 _I really hope you guys are enjoying this story, and I hope even more this chapter won't disappoint. So, without further 'ado, let's visit Hyrule, shall we?_

* * *

Link hated falling.

No, he really, _really_ hated falling.

Even in the pitch black vold through which he plummeted, he saw everything was a blur. He wanted to scream, but he moved so fast that no sound came out. He rolled and flipped several times as he just kept falling, falling, falling.

And then, just as fast as he fell through the blackness, he hit the ground. Pain ripped through his body, and he could have sworn that his spine snapped in half. He gritted his teeth and tried to scream but any breath he had had been stolen from his chest. He couldn't see anything. The pitch black he had fallen through was no different here on the ground.

Link turned around to see a faint light off in the distance. Very slowly and painfully, he rose to his feet. He limped toward the light, and he quickly saw that its source was a green hill, with small particles of light floating about. But what was hovering slightly above the surface of the hill was what captured Link's wonder. Three golden triangles, arranged in such a way that it formed even one bigger triangle, so perfect that any other combination or even the slightest movement of any or all of the triangles would have made its fascinating appearance, well, less fascinating.

He knew it was the Triforce. Which meant that he was in the Sacred Realm.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Link was startled at the sound of another voice. He turned around and Ilia stood behind him. Grinning at him, she strode to his side. "I always pictured us here as a girl, Link. Just you and me, standing here, side by side, nothing between us. Not my father, not your duties as a farmhand, not Princess Zelda..."

Wait, did she just say Princess Zelda? Link swore Ilia couldn't have known about the Princess, or at least her connection to Link, that is. Link didn't even know about it himself until he was dragged into the Twilight Wars. So then why did Ilia imply that Link loved Zelda, not to mention that she knew?

Seeing the confused expression on his face, Ilia asked, "Link, what's wrong? Are you okay?" She tried to grab his hand, but he pulled away in fear. Tears began to stream down Ilia's face as she slowly backed away from him. "I see," she said. "So you do love her. I- I'm sorry, Link. I didn't know." Link felt horrible. He took a step toward her but she held out her hand and cried, "Stop! Don't come any closer!" She buried her face in her hands and ran back into the blackness. Link fell to his knees and signed. What had he done? Ilia loved him and he broke her heart without saying a single word. What had he expected? Ilia was too good at interpreting his silence, having to live with it for 18 years.

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them he was back in Zelda's room. He gasped and sputtered, realizing it had only been a dream. _More like a nightmare_ , he thought. He rose from the chair he had been sleeping in and checked on Zelda, who was sleeping peacefully in her gargantuan bed, decorated with the finest linen cloths and imbedded with with dozens upon dozens of jewels and gems. It must've been nice to have been raised as royalty, Link decided. Knowing Zelda was safe, Link quietly opened the door to the long corridor outside. He stretched his arms before hearing a couple of gasps directly to his left and right. He looked both directions to see what was going on, and saw two guards lower their spears to his throat. Of all times for the guards to be alert and courageous, it had to be now.

"What were you doing in there?" one barked, pressing the tip of the blade to Link's adam's apple. Link gulped, opened his mouth to speak, and backflipped away from the pair before drawing the Master Sword from its sheath. He didn't want to fight the two guards, but he wanted even less to be hanging from a gallows in the morning. The two guards charged at him, so he rolled through a small gap between them and kicked one in the back, rendering him unconscious. The other turned around and tried to jab Link in the abdomen, but he countered the stab and clocked the guard in the head with the bottom of his hilt. With both guards knocked out, Link began his long journey through the castle's corridors. He tiptoed through each hall and passageway, hiding behind crates and inside curtains whenever he heard a guard come through the room he was hiding in. Finally, after about an hour of sneaking around, he was safe in Castle Town north.

And now, it was time for his journey back home, to Ordon. He knew he'd never be able to stay there. He was just going back for a night, to get his affairs in order.

To say goodbye to Ilia.

* * *

The village was quiet, as it always was. Link managed to arrive at his hometown just before dawn. As he crossed the rickety suspension bridge acting as the border between Faron and Ordona, he directed his trusty steed to the Spirit's Spring. Not only did Epona need the effects of the spring's rejuvenating waters, he knew for a fact Ilia'd be there, even at this early.

Sure enough, she was.

Link dismounted Epona and ran to her. She gasped and put both arms around him, and he did the same. "Oh, Link," she said, "after Father said you stormed off yesterday I didn't know what to do. I thought you were gone for good! I mean, you are staying, right?" He pulled away from her and held both of her hands. He stared sadly into her eyes and she understood what he meant by his stare. "So it's true. What the people have been saying, it's all true. You're...you're really leaving, aren't you?" Link was hurt by her pain. But he couldn't help it. Couldn't escape his fate. Ilia sighed and put her hand on his chest. "Well," she said softly, "wherever you choose to go or whatever you decide to do, just..." She paused before grinning slightly with tears in her eyes. "Be careful, okay? Don't do anything out of your league. Promise me that."

Link smiled and said, "I promise." Ilia laughed and hugged him again.

"Since when did you learn to talk?" she asked playfully. He just shrugged his shoulders and chuckled. The sun began to rise over the treetops, and they both sat down.

"Why can't you stay?" She wondered. "Nobody would object to you being here. And even if they did, my father would tell them off. You can have the life you always wanted, Link. When I regained my memories, you wrote me a letter saying about how much you missed Ordon, how you missed the quiet, provincial life that Ordon brought. You can have it again. Just stay here!" Link shook his head.

"I can't," he said. "The provincial life isn't for me, Ilia. Never has been, no matter how much I want it to be. It isn't my destiny."

"Link, destiny be damned! Live your own life! Don't let the goddesses control you the way they did your ancestors," she exclaimed.

"Ilia, I'm not letting anybody control me. I'm _choosing_ to stay in the city. Don't worry. I already talked to Malo about an internship at the Castle Town Malo Mart, at least until I can figure out what I want to do. We'll keep in touch. He'll have to eventually come back here for supplies and the like anyway, and I might tag along occasionally. You'll still see me. I won't be completely gone, I just won't be here," he tried to reassure her. She just sat there quietly.

Ilia eventually rested her head on his shoulder and asked him, "Before all of this, before you became a hero, did you ever think we could be more than friends?" He didn't know how to respond. Luckily, she promptly said, "Actually, don't answer that. I don't want to know. I'll just keep wondering. Maybe even imagine what out future could have been like. What kind of house we'd get, how many children we'd have, what kind of mayor you'd make, that sort of thing." They both chuckled, but Link knew in his heart that Ilia genuinely wanted all that. Expected it, even. And he couldn't give it to her. He cleared his throat and ran his fingers through her short, wavy hair.

"Ilia," he said, "What I am now, _who_ I am, will never, ever stop us from being friends. I'm sorry I can't stay, but I can't escape my destiny. So, though it's a really, really bad excuse for a goodbye, I want you to have this." He grabbed her shoulders and kissed her for at least five minutes.

"How long can you stay?" she asked him when they separated. He honestly didn't know. He hoped he could stay for at least three hours, giving him ample time to say goodbye to his friends and get a few things from his house. When he told her as much, she said, "Well, let's get busy. You've got a lot to do before you leave for the city. I'll clean and feed Epona. You talk to Rusl and Sera for food and supplies. After I'm done here, I'll pack a lunch for you and give you a few extra rupees to get you started. What are you waiting for? _Go_!" She said with a little bit of a laugh. Not wanting to keep her waiting, he ran through the forest into the village as she began to work on Epona. The sun was high in the sky at this point, despite it being only mid-morning, and every townsperson was up and at their daily activities. Doing everything Ilia told him wasn't difficult. Rusl gave him some extra clothes and a bed roll, and Sera loaded him up with tons of bottles of milk, Ordon cheese, and extra fish, apparently caught by none other than her own cat. After that was done, Ilia still wasn't finished with Epona, so he decided to gather a few things from his own house.

As soon as he entered the makeshift treehouse, he began to regret his decision to leave. He did his best to shove the feeling away from his heart as he quickly gathered a few extra pairs of shoes and other things. He exited the house just as Ilia walked up the path, Epona behind her. He vaulted over the railing of his house, planting his feet on the smooth ground beneath him, and rolled toward her, ending up right in front of her on one knee. He held out his hand and she took it, and he lightly kissed it. She blushed, and he rose to her eye level, and took both of her hands.

"You really are leaving, then?" she asked him sweetly. He sadly nodded his head as he put his supplies on Epona's back.

"If I delay any longer, Malo will have a fit I'm not working tomorrow morning, since I have to get moved in and everything. Which is strange, considering I'm like fifteen years older than he is minimum. But, it is what it is." He grabbed her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"Ilia, we will see each other again, in this life or the next. I swear by my honor." He kissed her one more time, before mounting Epona. It was an abrupt goodbye, he knew, but he had a feeling that she felt it sweet nonetheless. He spurred Epona on and she galloped into the woods beyond his little clearing. As he rode into the sea of trees in front of him, he looked back for the slightest fraction of a second and saw Ilia ever so slightly wave goodbye to him. And so began his long, permanent journey away from home.

* * *

When he finally reached the city once again, it was late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set. He led Epona through Castle Town's east gate and through the bustling streets. People cheered as he passed by, yelling things like, "The hero has returned!" or "Hylia bless the Hero of Twilight!" Link didn't much like the attention. He didn't like everybody knowing his name, didn't want all the publicity coming with saving the world from certain destruction. He honestly hated it. And yet here he was, living right in the midst of it, like a dog crawling back to its vomit. But where else was he supposed to go? He and Epona made their way to the entrance to the stables at the end of the East Road.

"Good afternoon, hero!" the stable-boy greeted him enthusiastically. "Nice sunset, ain't it?" Link looked toward the horizon and saw that the sun was almost completely gone. He'd have to hurry getting his things unpacked if he expected to be at his new job in the morning. Saying goodbye to the stable-boy and paying him a generous red rupee, he grabbed his things from Epona's back and jogged down to the south road, where his house was apparently waiting.

The home itself was actually made very well, a sturdy house of smooth stone and a red brick roof. It had a chimney on its right side, and was maybe about forty feet wide by fifty feet high. That was good. Link liked roomy accommodations. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and walked into his new home. The first thing he noticed about it was that it was warm. There was a fire blazing in the fireplace which warmed the entire house. His stomach was rumbling. He hadn't even noticed how hungry he was. Grunting, he took the sack of food off of his shoulder and put some fish on spits over the fire. He'd have grilled fish tonight, to celebrate a successful move in, he guessed. While the fish was cooking, he got to work unpacking his stuff. He put down his bedroll and blankets on the empty bedframe in the right side of the room, and the rest of the foodstuffs on the table behind him, in the corner. The rest of the clothes he had brought with him he put in an empty cabinet, generously left from the previous owners of the house. He looked around and saw that all of his unpacking was finished.

He flopped down on his bed and laid there for a long time. Finally, he could just rest for a few minutes. It was definitely relaxing, and also seemed to put him in a better mood. He always liked calm, quiet moments. It was more of who he was; a man of few words and many actions. Finally, for the first time in a year, he had some peace and tranquility.

He remembered his supper cooking, so he carefully removed the spits from above the fire and even more carefully removed the grilled-to-perfection fish from said spits. While they were cooling, he removed the cork from one the bottles of milk and put a wheel of cheese on the table. He ate that meal like a wolf, something he knew about firsthand. It was delicious. There was something about eating a meal he prepared himself that just made it taste about a million times better than any other place or person could've even attempted at doing. Within minutes he was finished. He let out a satisfying belch and realized he still had his sword and shield on.

 _No point having them on here_ , he thought. He unstrapped his bandolier and took it off, placing his sword and shield leaned up against his bed. He then lifted the green tunic off of his chest, and did the same with his chain mail. When he was stripped down to a bare chest and baggy brown pants, he took off his boots and threw them up against the east wall. He had nearly climbed into his bed when he realized he was also still wearing his hat. He took it off and ruffled his shaggy dirty blond hair. He gave a quick yawn, then once again flopped onto his bed and climbed into the wool blankets.

He fell asleep almost immediately. His first day living in Hyrule was over.


	3. Chapter 2 - Narrow Escape

_Okay, well, I'm back! It's a nice fe_ _eling to be able to continue a story after a long break, but whatever. As always, thanks to the followers and favorite-ers of this story (if that's even a word...) and specifically a big thanks goes out to TheObsessedBookworm, HawkstarInHyrule, and Chameleon Eyes for reviewing the previous chapter. My appreciation is endless._

 _Well, enough of my rambling! Onto the story._

* * *

"Open this door, right now!"

Link groggily rubbed his eyes as he sat up in his bed. He didn't recognize the voices outside his door, but they sounded urgent. He slowly rose from his blankets and stood up, his eyes feeling glazed over. The fire was still roaring; he had forgot to put it out last night. If that wasn't a fire hazard, he didn't know what was. But he couldn't focus on that right now, he had more pressing matters to attend to.

He threw on a spare blue tunic Rusl had given him and walked lazily over to the door. He opened it, and was immediately grabbed by both of his arms. That woke him up.

"Link of Ordon," one of the guards at his door said gruffly, "you are hereby under arrest for breaking into Princess Zelda's quarters. You have the right to remain silent and you will be hanged by your neck until dead as punishment for your utterly heinous crimes." With that, the guard speaking motioned to the other two who had Link captive to follow him. They began to drag Link through the city, the two guards who held him arguing about whether or not Link should be hung or burned at the stake. If it were up to him, Link would definitely have said neither. But, it wasn't up to him. He was, unfortunately, going to die.

As the guards dragged him through the town, he kept his head high, despite being sentenced to death and all. What other choice did he have, really? He couldn't show weakness to the Hyrulean people, not after everything they expected him to be. Still, he felt fake nonetheless.

When they reached the town square, Link saw the gallows. It was magnificent, even though he knew it was his death warrant. And intimidating. Very, very intimidating.

He was led by the guards up onto the platform, and a rough rope noose was placed around his neck. It was uncomfortable, each little strand of frayed fabric digging into his skin. A black translucent hood was forced over his head, and while he couldn't see very well, he could barely make out the shape of the town cryer in front of him, a short, fat man with an even fatter voice.

"This man, Link of Ordon, has hereby been sentenced to death by hanging. His crimes are so unspeakable that I cannot publicly declare them," he said with a fake sorrow. Link growled. This wasn't right. He was innocent.

The crowd, which had apparently just gathered, booed and hissed at the guards. Or maybe it was at him. He honestly didn't want to know.

The herald silenced the crowd and said, "However, Hyrulean law states that every convicted prisoner must be given the opportunity to repent of his crimes. Master Link, do you confess to your treason and hereby repent of your crimes?" Link wanted to say yes, but knew he didn't do anything wrong. He shook his head, hoping that his death would go down in Hyrule's history as that of a martyr, not a criminal.

"So be it," yelled the cryer. "The prisoner refuses to accept our benevolent offer and thus has sealed his fate. Master executioner, do as you wish." With that, he stepped down from the platform and marched through the crowd, which was silent and somber from what Link could tell. He closed his eyes, equally as somber. His mind went to Zelda and the one night he had spent with her personally, even if it wasn't in any way intimate. He thought of the relationship they could've had, and maybe the one he craved with her. But it wasn't to be. She would continue to be the princess, and he would be dead. He sighed, accepting his fate.

He braced himself as the executioner reached for the lever which would send him through the platform and hanging limply on a rope, his neck bent grotesquely. He gritted his teeth. He heard the executioner's fingers grip the lever and the grunt he gave as he began to pull it. Everything went into slow motion. The trapdoor opened up, and Link felt himself falling.

His feet touched the ground with a thud.

 _Wait, what?_ he thought. _I should be dead_. He pinched himself to make sure he was still alive, and flinched at the pain. Yes, he was actually still alive. He sighed in relief and almost laughed when a hand suddenly clamped over his mouth.

"Don't struggle," a low, raspy voice said in a whisper, "and don't make a sound. We have to ensure that you get out of this wretched place in one piece." Link did as he was told as the man, at least Link assumed the person the voice belonged to was a man, cut the noose from his neck. The rope, Link noticed had been disconnected just before the noose itself formed, frayed, like it had previously been sabatoged. Someone was helping him stay alive.

"You feeling alright, hero?" The man asked. He wore a long black robe with a hood that cast a shadow over his eyes, keeping them out of sight. He had a short, brown beard that formed a wispy goatee at the point of his chin. He asked again, "Are you alright?"

Link nodded, and the man said, "Good. Come with me. The others are waiting." He gestured to a grate under the platform of the gallows before stooping down and gingerly lifting it from its hinges, making no noise. The man motioned to Link to follow him as he climbed down a ladder leading into the sewers. Taking a deep breath, Link followed suit, descending once more into the depths of Hyrule's underground tunnels.

* * *

If Link really, really hated falling, he really, really, really, really, _really_ hated Hyrule's sewers. He'd been a wolf both times he'd come down here, which although it made navigating the tunnels a lot easier, his acute sense of smell made traveling almost unbearable. All the stuff that could be down here, well, he didn't want to think about it. Luckily, in his Hylian form the stench wasn't as bad, but if he breathed too fast he could probably still get a stomachache or worse.

After about an hour or so of following the man in the cloak, Link finally reached the central area with the long, winding staircase. Luckily, this time around there were no bulblins guarding the tightropes, but the stairs hadn't been repaired. There was no way Link could've possibly scaled them; in his Hylian form those jumps would've been impossible to make, and he didn't have any of his gear with him.

"Oh, I almost forgot," said the strange man. "Forgive me for my intrusion, but you left the door to your house unlocked. I gathered your things for you." The man reached inside his robe and pulled out a large brown satchel. Tossing it to Link, he added, "Everything you need is in there. Come find me when you're finished properly equipping yourself." With that, the man walked out of the staircase room and into the area they came from. Link opened the satchel and found his hero's tunic, cap, and bandolier folded neatly inside. Attached to the bandolier, as always, was Link's magic adventure pouch, complete with seemingly infinite storage space. He grinned as he put on the familiar gear. When he strapped the bandolier to his torso, he reached back for his sword before realizing it wasn't there. His heart sank. Without the Master Sword, he felt like he'd been separated from his closest friend.

"Looking for these?" Link turned around and saw the robed man in front of him again. "Sorry, I just guessed you were finished getting ready. I see I was right. I assume you'll be wanting these?" The strange man reached in his robe again and pulled out a small wooden box. He threw it on the ground and waved his hand over its lid, and it began to grow until it had become a full-sized chest.

"You'll find it in there," the man told Link, who honestly wasn't sure what "it" was. Then again, he also didn't know who the man he was following was, either, and he had gotten Link this far. He decided to take a chance.

He opened the chest and took out the contents. His eyes grew wide and his lips curled into a wide smile. He'd only been apart from it for a few hours but it had felt to him like an eternity. He loved its familiar grip, its perfect balance in his hand, its strange ability to make him feel more powerful every time he swung its blade.

He took it and put it in its sheath, which he put on his back. The Hero of Time Incarnate and the Blade of Evil's Bane had once again been reunited.

"Um, I hate to spoil this lovely reunion, but we have to get going, Link," said his mysterious companion. Link knew he was right. Whatever was going on in Hyrule was an urgent situation that required immediate attention. Link secured the sword one last time before closing the chest, which vanished into thin air. Now he was ready.

Except, of course, for the fact that the stairs were still down, and he still couldn't climb them. How in Farore's name did some strange man expect him to just simply get to the top without even offering to help?

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, Link," said the man, as if he just read Link's thoughts. "I'm sure you have a gadget that can get you up there. Two, in fact, if I'm right. You don't need my help. It is I who needs yours."

 _Duh_ , he thought. _The clawshots. Why am I so dumb sometimes?_ Mentally slapping himself, he reached into his pouch and produced both of them, handing one to the robed man and keeping the other for in himself. Part of him didn't feel safe giving such a useful tool to a man whose name he didn't even know. But he shook the thought aside, reassuring himself this man was a friend. After all, he had saved Link's life. The robed man just grinned, opening the claw and firing the chain into a couple of loose rocks. Within seconds he was at the doorway to the outside.

Amazed that the man worked with such speed, Link did the same. Soon he was running across the rooftops of Hyrule Castle behind the robed man. The territory was familiar, with Link having sprinted across these roofs twice before. So, when the man said they were headed toward Zelda's old tower, Link didn't hesitate to go there.

Once they were inside they made their way up the small spiral staircase to Zelda's old prison chambers. Link couldn't understand what they were doing there. Zelda hadn't been there for probably a month, and it didn't look like anyone had bothered to clean up or even sweep the floor. The place was in shambles so what could they be doing there anyway? When Link asked as much the man just chuckled and told him, "You'll see."

Wow. Great answer.

Link rolled his eyes and followed the man to Zelda's old bed, who asked him to help move it. In about two minutes, the bed was somewhere around five meters away from the wall. The man, looking satisfied, walked over to the wall and pressed his hand against it. He spoke a few words in a language Link had never heard of and backed away, obviously anticipating something.

Nothing happened.

At least, not at first.

Right when Link was just about to walk away, he heard a loud rumbling and part of the wall slid down, revealing a couple of gear and pulley mechanisms and another ladder, leading down. Great. Another ladder, probably leading into more sewer systems. Just great.

"Come on, Link. It really isn't that bad," the robed man said before descending the ladder. Cursing under his breath, Link followed him down into the mysteries waiting below him

* * *

Well that had certainly not been what Link was expecting.

The ladder, as it turned out, hadn't led into more sewers. It led to a tunnel which looked more like one of the Castle's hallways. It had smooth stone flooring with a long, blue velvet carpet running along most of it, with about ten gold lamps on each wall. At the end was a door made of wood with a stained glass window on it. He felt like he recognized the design, but he didn't remember ever seeing it from anywhere on his travels. It bugged him. Why did he recognize it?

"A design taken from the Old Forest Temple, if you can believe it. Who passed it down to Hyrule's architects, no one knows. But, here it is, so someone must've remembered it." The man, once again, seemingly answered Link's mental question. But why? Why could he have done that?

Link shoved the thought aside and opened the door. He was greeted by the sound of a crackling fireplace and the low chatter of voices. As the door swung open, it creaked and as Link's eyes adjusted to the dim lighting he saw all the heads in the room—maybe four or five—turn his direction. He saw a look of shock, maybe even disbelief, on every one of their faces.

The strange thing was, he _knew_ these people. They were his friends. The entire Resistance was right here, in this room. Ashei, Auru, Rusl, Telma, and Shad. These people had saved his life multiple times.

So why did they look so surprised that he was here? Weren't they expecting him?

Auru cleared his throat and said, "Well, Byrne, I have to congratulate you. You've done your job much better than I expected."

The robed man bowed his head and said, "I didn't think he would've been much use to us dead, Master."

Link was so confused. What was going on? Why was Auru's voice so solemn? Who was this Byrne character anyway? And why in the world was Auru acting like Link shouldn't have been there?

"Okay," he finally asked. "What the hell is going on here?" He looked around at their faces. Ashei and Shad lowered their heads in shame. Telma looked away from him and Auru tried to speak but it looked like he couldn't. Rusl walked over to Link and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Forgive us, Link," he said, "but none of us expected you to survive your execution. You should be dead."

"But I'm not! I'm alive! That should be a good thing!"

"It is a good thing," a new voice rang through the circular room. "A very good thing, at that." A robed figure wearing a cloak similar to that of Byrne's stood from a chair and walked next to Link.

"In fact," she said, Link realizing that her voice was feminine, "It is the best thing that has happened to both the Resistance and to myself." The woman was fighting back tears at this point, Link could tell. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in his chest. Just like...

Wait a second. That voice...

That black robe, with a sheikah eye of truth insignia on it...

The poise in her stride...

No. It couldn't be her. Couldn't be.

He pulled back her hood.

It _was_ her.

"Zelda," he said, nearly choking from the lump in his throat. She put a finger to his lips and kissed him.


	4. Chapter 3 - Out of Control

_Alright, so things are really starting to heat up. I'm glad from what I heard a lot of people enjoyed the last installment and I'm grateful for the compliments I received from those people. Speaking of which, thanks goes out to Chameleon Eyes and TheObsessedBookworm for your reviews. You all are way too kind to me._

 _I think I need to stop rambling (even though my other author notes are usually much longer :P). So without further 'ado, here's Chapter 3._

 _DISCLAIMER: I don't own Zelda or any of its characters._

* * *

"Oh, Link," the Princess exclaimed after they separated, "I heard the guards were having you executed, and..." Her words trailed off. She looked at the ground and began to sob again. Link pulled her back into his arms and whispered nearly silently in her ear, telling her that he was fine and that nothing was going to separate them again. As cheesy as he knew the words were, he had a feeling it was the only thing that would've helped. Zelda regained her composure and told him, "I wanted to save you, I truly did. But something is not right in the castle. I am not sure exactly what it is, but the entire environment is different. Darker, as it seems.

"So when I ordered the arrest to be ceased, the guards would not listen to me. They told me that my power could not stop justice from being served to a horrible criminal. I was devastated. For one, my rule had become more of a symbolism; I had no actual authority, or so it seemed. For another, you were going to die. So I had to take drastic measures. I turned to these people." Zelda waved her hand to the six other figures in the room, the Resistance.

Auru cleared his throat. "We had recently inducted a new member into our little group, you see. Byrne. Based on his, er, _expertise_ , we figured him to be the best solution to the Princess' problem. But we had a feeling the chances of saving you were slim. I told Byrne that he was at least required to recover your body. If you could be saved, fantastic, and if not, it couldn't be helped." Link began to understand: the Resistance had wanted him alive but couldn't count on his rescue in case it didn't work. Still, it wasn't like them to doubt him, or any one of them, for that matter. If Byrne was a member of the Resistance, they must've trusted him. So why didn't they trust him when he was sent out on a mission? None of it made any sense.

"Now, now, you all, Link's alive, whatever the case. Stop being so negative," Telma corrected softly but sternly. "Shouldn't you be rejoicing _that_ he's here rather than wondering _why_?" The Gerudo bartender was certainly a force to reckon with, even among her friends. Link was grateful to have her on his side.

"Telma is right," Zelda agreed, "We should be focusing on the problem at hand, not one that has already been resolved."

"So what's your point?" Ashei asked flatly. She, Link noticed, had been standing in the corner of the dim room sharpening a knife, which she ran along her index finger. When the knife drew blood, she winced, but grinned as if she was satisfied. Link shuddered. Another reason he was glad he was part of the Resistance, and not fighting them. He knew that Ashei would never hesitate to run her blade through anyone who threatened Hyrule, or its princess.

"My point is that whatever is going on within the castle is obviously not good," Zelda replied with just a hint of annoyance.

Ashei snorted. "I could'a told you that."

Zelda glared at her. Link chuckled slightly. Even if Ashei was sworn to protect the Princess, she wasn't huge on respect. Even for said princess.

"Now that the group has been reunited, I vote we send someone into the castle. It is imperative that whatever is going on is put to a stop immediately." Zelda was doing her best to act strong and brave in front of the others, but she glanced at Link and he knew otherwise. It wasn't much, just a fleeting look that lasted for only a split second, but it was enough. He'd seen that look before, right after Midna had teleported them out of Hyrule Castle as she made her final stand.

Link started to feel woozy. He felt his eyes roll back into their sockets, and his knees went limp. He barely felt himself topple to the floor. The last thing he remembered before blacking out was Zelda's shriek of terror as she knelt beside him.

* * *

 _Ganondorf was getting closer and closer. With each second that passed his black horse took five, maybe six steps at a speed which wasn't even physically possible. But Link knew all too well that nothing about Ganondorf followed physical laws._

 _Link saw the glint of bloodlust in his adversary's eyes, the sneer on his face, the intense grip of the Sage's Sword as if he was wringing Link's neck. Ganondorf licked his lips as he held his blade aloft, the five skeletal warriors at his side charging toward Link and Zelda even faster than their King. Link wanted to scream. This wasn't how the Hero of Hyrule was supposed to die. He knew from the legends that the hero always killed the villain. That was how it was supposed to happen. Clearly it wasn't the case here._

 _Zelda's cold, slender fingers slipped in between his. She looked at him for a split second, fear in her eyes, despair on her face. Her message was clear. She needed his help. No matter how much strength she could muster on her own, it would never be enough without his._

 _He was important to her._

 _He closed his hand, their fingers interlocked, and he sadly shook his head at her. He only hoped she understood. He couldn't help her. He hated this feeling, the gut-wrenching realization that so many people relied on his strength but even that wasn't enough. He was helpless to save them, leaving them just as helpless as he was._

 _Link looked right at Ganondorf. The wicked grin on the Evil King's face had become a scowl of rage. He was only yards away. He raised the Sage's Sword, poised to lop off Link's head. Link shut his eyes, anticipating the swipe of the blade that would pass through his neck and separate it from his body. He gritted his teeth, and grasped Zelda's hand even tighter. He at least hoped that when this was all over, when he was gone from Hyrule, she would be okay. For the billionth time in his life he was hoping this, facing death and assuring himself that his imminent demise would somehow benefit Hyrule._

 _Man, he ended up in this scenario a lot._

 _He felt the edge of the cold blade run across his neck. He winced at the pain, and felt the horrible sensation of warm liquid running down his skin. His own blood. It was everywhere. His mouth filled with it, its metallic taste disgusting him. He coughed, spewing the liquid from his mouth. He began to lose consciousness as his knees went slack and he crumpled to the ground. Oh goddesses, he was going to die. He was going to die. He dared not open his eyes. He didn't want the last thing he was going to see be whatever horrible thing Ganondorf had done to Zelda._

 _He gripped Zelda's hand even tighter, hoping for a response. There was none. Her arm was limp, her fingers cold as ice. He wanted to cry out for help. Or just cry out for no reason in particular. The pain in his neck was getting unbearable. His breaths were getting shorter. It was hard to even lift a finger. He was weak, losing too much blood. There was blood everywhere. Blood everywhere._

 _He inhaled deeply for what he knew would be the last time in his life. He fell forward, his face brushing against the soft grass. He let out the air in his lungs in a cough, and gasped quickly, his neck sticky from the blood coagulating there._

 _And then, as quickly as it had come, the pain subsided._

 _He opened his eyes. His neck was clean and healed, without any evidence that there had been any wound at all. There was no blood on his tunic, nor were there any rips or tears that had been there only moments before. His hands had no dirt on them, and the calluses from years of sword fighting were gone. His blue earrings were also gone, and the piercings in his ears were closed up. He ran one gloved hand through his hair. It was soft and smooth, as if it had just been washed. The fabric of his tunic was equally soft. He felt like a completely new person._

 _He looked around at his surroundings. He stood on a seemingly infinite surface. The ground, if he could call it that, was made of water. What amazed him even more is that he was standing on it. He took a few steps, and somehow he didn't fall through the surface._

So this is what it's like to be dead _, he thought. Continuing to survey his surroundings, his eyes rested on the Princess, standing less than ten yards away or so._

 _Link's heart sank. A huge lump formed in his throat. The "new person" feeling vanished completely. If she was here with him, and he was dead..._

 _Had he failed at his ultimate goal? The goal that he, as the Hero and Protector of Hyrule, was fated to accomplish?_

 _Had he allowed Princess Zelda to die?_

 _As he took the few steps required to reach her side, his legs felt like lead. His arms slumped to his sides. He swallowed, sweat pouring down his face. He opened his mouth to speak. She turned in his direction, a single tear running down her face._

* * *

Link sputtered and gasped as he snapped awake. What had happened? Was it a dream? Or was he remembering something? He could've sworn that wasn't what happened. He distinctly remembered Zelda whisking them away to a realm where they agreed to defeat Ganondorf once and for all, no matter the cost. So what was _that_? Which memory was real?

Ironically, trying to sort through the whole thing in his head just made his brain hurt even more.

He lifted a hand to his right ear. The blue ring was still there, embedded in his earlobe. Link sighed in relief and touched his throat. He stopped and his eyes went wide. There was a slight trace of a scar, ever so faint like it had happened years ago, but it was still there. So _had_ Ganondorf killed him?

He looked around. The entire Resistance was huddled around him, worried expressions on all the their faces. And Zelda...

He felt his stomach churn, his entire body feeling suddenly queasy. The thought of her, standing there with him, in life, and in death, made him feel guilty. So much so that it made him sick to his stomach.

Finally it was more than he could take, and he vomited right on the spot. Nobody seemed to care very much, except for Shad, who turned green in the face and excused himself to probably throw up as well. Link might've laughed, if he wasn't so nauseous. Memories swirled in his head, each one making him more and more sick.

Telma helped him to his feet, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. "There, there, honey," she cooed softly, "it's gonna be alright. For now, you need to get some rest. You'll be fine in the morning."

She led him to a small room with nothing but a bed and a nightstand. Or was it more than that? His head was spinning so much he couldn't even tell. He allowed Telma to set him down on the small bed (there couldn't have been more than one) and tuck him in.

This must have been what his parents were like. Shame he couldn't remember them.

His stomach lurched again, and he threw up over the side of the bed. Telma dabbed his forehead with a wet rag and quietly shushed him before leaning down to clean up his little mess. Link just sighed. He was really too exhausted to do much more, but he also didn't want to sleep. What if another one of those dreams hit? What would it be this time?

He tried to keep his eyes open. He tossed and turned this way and that, doing his best to force himself to stay awake. But eventually he was just too tired. His eyelids drooped and soon closed completely.

 _No_ , he thought. _Not now_. But he still gave in to the beckoning call of sleep. He drifted off into the blackness of unconciousness for the second time in an hour.

He slept dreamlessly. Which came as a relief, given that he had worried for a while as to whether or not he would have one of those dreams or not, but also left him slightly more confused than the evening before. While he certainly hadn't wanted to experience it again, he was perplexed by the fact that it hadn't happened. Were they kind of a spontaneous thing?

The soft sound of rapping against the closed door greeted Link's ears and he bolted upright, telling whoever was on the other side to come in. The knob turned and the door opened, and Ashei walked in.

"Hey," she said. "How're you feeling?" Link honestly felt horrible. His stomach hurt nearly as much as his head, and the only people willing to help with either were Telma and Ashei herself. He wanted to tell Ashei as much, but finally decided against it, and instead informed her that he was doing fine.

"That's good, I guess. Look, the others are worried about you, Link."

"They send you here to tell me that?" Link snapped. "If they were worried, they'd come tell me themselves!"

"Link, don't say that," Ashei pleaded. "They care about you just as much as I do."

"Since when have you ever cared about anything, Ashei? You've always struck first and asked questions later." Link detected a hint of anger in his own voice, and as much as he wanted to calm himself down, he couldn't. It was as if something inside of him was controlling his actions for him. Kind of like what Zelda had said about the soldiers not listening to her: being the leader of something and yet having zero control over it.

"Link, what you said is certainly true. I have always been one to be too aggressive, but I do honestly care about you. I care about all of the Resistance. You all are my friends. The only friends I've ever had, for that matter. You can't win a war if you don't got others fighting the battle with you, yeah?" Ashei seemed to be trying to cheer Link up. It wasn't working. At least, the thing inside of him wasn't letting it work.

He felt the response rising in his throat. As it came out, the cheerful expression on Ashei's face changed immediately to one of shock. Link knew it was wrong to have said it. And yet, even so, it didn't even feel like he had been the one speaking. Like someone else was saying what they wanted through his body.

Link looked back up at Ashei. She looked angry. Angry and sad at the same time. Tears streamed down her face. Link's heart raced and his stomach churned even more than it already was. Ashei _never_ cried. Never.

Link had genuinely hurt her.

"Ashei, I-" he started. She held up her hand and turned away from him.

"Save it," she said solemnly, her voice shaky. "I'm sorry I bothered, Link." With that, she walked out of the room, sobbing quietly.

After she left, Link laid back down for a few minutes, then, after deciding that he was too bored to try to fall back to sleep, he got out of his bed. Besides, it would give him a reason to focus on something other than Ashei.

Of course, as luck would have it, she was the first person he met. Awkward.

Link tried to apologize, but she was obviously hurt beyond apology, at least for now. He dicided against telling her that he didn't mean to say it. For one, it sounded cheesy and too much like an excuse. For another, he didn't really think she'd fancy the idea that he had simply lost control of his body. Not that he could blame her, of course. He could hardly believe it himself.

His head swimming, he decided to get some fresh air. Maybe the musty underground atmosphere was getting to him.

Two hours later, Link decided it wasn't the air. He felt exactly the same.

He sat atop one of the castle's azure tiled rooftops. Trying to clear his head had been harder than he thought, because he would mentally ask one question, opening up at least five different possible answers, each one leading to ten more questions. Eventually he just gave up. He laid down on the slanted roof and looked up at the sky. Nothing much, save for a few wandering flocks of guays and the occasional kargorok snapping one of the crow-like birds out of the sky. Other than that, the sky was beautiful. For a second, just taking in the beauty of the serene environment gave Link the opportunity to almost forget his pain and sickness.

Maybe just trying to figure everything out was what was making him sick. It kind of felt good to not really have a care about anything, to just take in his surroundings.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" a voice behind him spoke. He sat up and turned around to see Byrne standing behind him. "I'm sorry I never got to properly introduce myself, Link. I'm Byrne, as you already know." He stood out a gloved hand, and Link grabbed it and shook it. Strange. Byrne's hand felt like metal.

Byrne chuckled a bit. "What, wondering about my hand, are you?" Link was a bit taken aback by the fact that Byrne seemed to be able to read every thought he had. It was a little disheartening. He didn't say that, of course.

"Yes, it, well, it feels metallic, is all," Link finally replied. "I'm probably just being paranoid or something. It's nothing, right?"

Byrne chuckled even more. Instead of saying anything, he just removed the glove, revealing completely normal hand. Except, of course, for the fact that it was made of silver. Link's jaw dropped. "Your hand-"

"Is metal? Yes. But that's not all." Byrne unbuttoned his cloak and threw it off. He wore a tight blue tunic and a pair of brown trousers, and black riding boots. Was he a rider?

Then Link saw what Byrne was talking about. About a third of Byrne's left arm was missing, replaced by a giant silver gauntlet.

"Your hand is made of metal," Link said in disbelief.

"Yes, well, when I was a boy, a monster attack on my village left me, er, like this. I lost a good fourth of my arm, but another portion of it had to be amputated by the doctors. They replaced it with this."

"Must've done a pretty good job. Looks like you can move it like a normal hand."

"Very true." Byrne closed and opened his hand to prove Link's point. "But that's not all it can do. Watch this."

Byrne extended his arm and pointed it at another one of the roof's sections of shingles. He pressed a gem on the surface with his right hand, and a second later he was on the other side of the castle.

"You have a _clawshot_? Built into your _arm_?" Link shouted, grinning.

"Yes!" Byrne shouted back. "Rather amazing, isn't it?"

"Hold on!" Link exclaimed as he reached into his adventure pouch, summoning his clawshots. He launched himself over to Byrne, who laughed heartily and shot his arm over to a different section. Link followed him to and fro, clawing over to this section of roof, jumping to that window, and skydiving from the occasional tower before grabbing hold of a broken section of stones of the wall. He had to admit, it was fun. More fun than he'd had in a long time.

Eventually the two of them decided to take a breather, finding a nice resting spot on the roof right outside Zelda's old tower, where Link had come out initially. They sat there, for a long time, panting and laughing and just enjoying each other's company.

It was nice to have a real friend again. The only other friend he'd ever really had, the only person who'd ever truly understood him, was Midna.

Midna.

"Link, are you alright?" he barely heard Byrne say. He looked down at his hands. His palms were shaking. He touched his forehead; it was sweating profusely. His heart pounded like a drum.

"Yeah, I'm fine." But he knew he really wasn't. His voice was shaky and his breathing was heavy.

"Link. What's going on?"

"Nothing! I promise, everything's fine," Link shot back. His tone was harsh, almost as harsh as his conversation with Ashei.

"Link, calm down," Byrne commanded. "Getting worked up will only make things worse."

"And what exactly do you know about it? Huh? How many friends have you lost, Mr. I'm So Perfect I Know Everything Under the Sun Moon And Stars? How many friends have you seen die before your eyes? How many people have left you broken and scarred with wounds that will never heal?" Link choked on his words, fighting back tears. "How many people have left your life forever without as much as a simple goodbye?"

Byrne sighed and put a hand on Link's shoulder. Tears began to roll down Link's cheeks, dripping onto his hands. It was just so freaking hard, trying to feign courage when right now he had none. He hated being vulnerable in front of anyone. Especially another guy who he barely knew and spent literally one afternoon with.

Byrne spoke again. "It's okay, Link. I understand how you feel."

Link didn't want Byrne's sympathy. He wanted Midna back. She was gone, forever, and didn't even care enough about Link to let him know she was going, cowardly leaving it up to Zelda to break the difficult news to him.

Clearing his throat, Byrne stood up and patted Link's shoulder. "I can see you want to be alone. I'll leave you, then. But do try to understand that we do care about you. I will always be available if you ever need to talk, Link. Goodbye." With that, Byrne put on his robe and walked back into the tower, leaving Link alone for the billionth time in his life.

With nothing left to do, Link considered following Byrne back into the Resistance's hideout. But he decided he really didn't want to talk to anyone in the secret group, so he ran swiftly in the other direction across the castle's long rooftops.

Eventually he came to a point where he could jump down onto a platform where he climbed down a ladder. Finding himself on the ground once again, Link kept running and found his way through the Castle's extremely large courtyard. Finally he found himself standing in front of the large doors leading into the great hall.

He wondered what he was doing in front of the place he was desperately trying to escape from. But he needed advice, and given that Zelda hadn't been in the Resistance's new hideout, he figured she had to be here. He inhaled deeply and opened the doors, bracing himself for the crowds of people that would no doubt be in the hall.

The entire room was empty. Good. He wouldn't be noticed.

He worked his way up to Zelda's throne room. Most of it was already quickly being repaired from Ganondorf's attacks, and looked as good as new. But there was one problem: Zelda wasn't on her throne.

Link looked around, wondering why the entire room, no, the entire _castle_ was empty. And more importantly, where was Zelda?

"Zelda?" he called out. "Zelda! Are you here?"

"Link?" came a faint reply from around the corner. A few seconds later, the princess emerged from one of the side balconies. "Link! Oh, goddesses, you're all right! And you're on your feet! Are you sure you're in a condition to be walking around? Why did you leave the Resistance?"

After about ten more questions Link invited her to sit down on the stairs and told her of the events of the day, mainly his unintentional falling outs with Ashei and Byrne. Zelda looked puzzled, he could tell.

"I have never heard of anything like that, Link," she said. "Honestly, I don't have an explanation for it." She furrowed her eyebrows, racking her brain for any possible reason. Link chuckled, and she stared at him suspiciously. "Is something funny?"

Link said sweetly, "You're cute when you think hard."

"Link, are you _flirting_ with the princess of Hyrule?" Zelda teased. "That is a very unconventional practice."

"With all due respect, your highness, have you ever known me to be a conventional man?"

"Touché. However, you overlook the fact that you are not really a man at all. You are barely nineteen."

"I turned twenty last month, your majesty."

"Well, then, you are officially a man. Would you like me to help you celebrate?"

"I don't need a celebration. Just, oh, I don't know, a _kiss_ will suffice."

"That is absurd. The princess of Hyrule has no time for such trivialities."

"Well, excuuuuuuuse me, princess."

They both exploded with laughter, and when they finally regained control of themselves, Zelda returned to the subject at hand.

"In all seriousness, what you have explained to me perplexes me greatly. The only thing I can think of even remotely similar to your description is..." she trailed off.

"Is what, your majesty?"

Zelda didn't say anything at first. Then she slowly, softly spoke in a hushed tone, "Link, what exactly did you dream about when you fainted? You did dream, did you not?"

Link said that he had, and asked her why.

"I truly hope I am wrong. But about two nights ago, the night you stayed with me in the castle, I had a horrible nightmare. I am scared to even tell you what it was about, it was so dark and twisted. And yet, something tells me that I must let you know. Will you listen?"

"Anything for you, your highness."

"I dreamt I was standing in Hyrule field," she started. "You were standing there with me, Master Sword drawn in one hand, my own hand in the other. We looked out into the horizon. I was stricken with terror, and you had a look of sheer rage in your eyes. And what we saw was darker and far more evil than the blackest night. Ganondorf.

"He was charging toward us, Sage's sword drawn to end our days on this world. His horse shared the bloodlust I saw in both his eyes and his heart. You held the sword out to protect us, but I think you knew that it would do no good. I gripped your hand even tighter, and you gave me a sadly apologetic glance. Yet, never once did your courage ever leave your eyes. It remained to the very end. Because there was an end. Ganondorf took his blade and-"

"Zelda, stop," Link said as he put a finger over her lips. "I know how this ends."

"Because you had the vision?"

"No," he's said, "I mean, yes, but that's not the only reason why. Because somehow, I think it might have actually happened."


	5. Chapter 4 - Less Answers, More Questions

_I think I decided that wasting enormous amounts of time thinking about author's notes is taking away from my imagination at times, so from now on, I think I'm just going to keep them to a minimum. That said, thanks to TheObsessedBookworm and HawkstarInHyrule for reviewing the last chapter. Both these authors are extremely talented writers and (hoping they don't get mad at me for this, sorry guys) you should definitely check out their work. Also thanks to anyone who followed or favorited this story, your support is priceless._

 _Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda, though I do own several copies of the various games._

* * *

Link half expected Zelda to tell him he was crazy. In fact, he almost hoped she would. It would have confirmed that nothing about the life he'd lived for the past few days was real. He certainly wouldn't have blamed her.

Of course that was too much to ask of the goddesses. Of course she _had_ to agree with him.

"As strange as it sounds, I believe you may be correct, Link," she told him, her brow furrowing. "I don't understand. It makes no sense, and yet it makes perfect sense."

They were both silent for a long while, Princess deep in thought and Hero trying to grasp why on the world he was acting so strangely lately. What was wrong with him? He knew he would never treat _anyone_ like that, much less his own friends. So then why was he acting so evil lately? And more importantly, why didn't he have control over it, whatever _it_ was?

"Link," Zelda said finally, "I may have a solution, or at least a possible explanation. It's crazy, and potentially dangerous, but it may explain both our dreams and your erratic behavior as of late." She gestured for Link to follow her, and he did. Whatever it took to fix his horrible actions, he would do. He couldn't have another outburst, especially not toward Zelda.

Before they went very far, Zelda turned around and handed him his sword and shield. Link gaped. He hadn't even realized he didn't have them, and when he asked Zelda where in the world she got them from, she chuckled lightly and said, "Summoning spell. The Blade of Evil's Bane and the Sacred Shield of the Royal Family have magic auras. I can detect and reach them from virtually anywhere." She waved the question away as if anyone should've been able to understand the concept of magic. Link still had a hard time understanding the concept that his sword and shield each had longer names than he did.

When Link strapped the sword's sheath and his shield to his bandolier, the two continued walking. Along the way, Zelda asked him, "Why don't you run away? Your bounty is extremely high. What is so appealing about Hyrule that you continue to stay?"

He thought about this for a few moments, then said, "To where will I go? I am Hyrule's protecor. If I left Hyrule, your highness, it would be like a goatherd neglecting to take care of his flock."

"And you think that Hyrule is worth dying for?"

"Yes."

"Everybody has a choice, Link. Your destiny is not chosen for you. You need not feel obligated to eternally serve Hyrule because you were forced to fight for it once."

"I don't feel obligated to fight for Hyrule, Zelda. My choice is to stay, but not for the country. In fact, I never fought for Hyrule."

"Then what did you fight for?"

"Not what, who. I fought for you, your majesty." Link paused, small tears forming in the bottoms of his eyes. He wiped them away before finishing his thought. "And I'd lay down my life for you in a heartbeat."

"I deeply hope it does not come to that, Link," Zelda said, stopping. She leaned close to him and whispered in his ear, "If you were dead, I couldn't do this, could I?" She gently rubbed her lips against his, and pulled away with a tiny smile on her face. "Now, come. There's so much to show you, and not much time." Link didn't argue. She led him through a maze of corridors, rooms, courtyards, gardens, and halls until they finally reached a large, circular room toward what Link assumed was the back of the Palace.

The room itself was nothing to boast about. Sure, it was big, but that's about all it had to offer. It was what was inside the room that made it so magnificent. Everywhere Link looked, there were thousands upon thousands of books everywhere. Hundreds of shelves and desks were piled high with texts and pamphlets by the dozens. Ladders on wheels were located around the room, taller than the tallest trees, to reach the books on the highest shelves. Link had to admit it was probably the most books he'd ever seen in his lifetime, although he _had_ been a farmer for most of his life. Still, he didn't think he could read all of them even if he spent the rest of his life in here.

"Welcome," Zelda said, waving her hand around the room, "to the royal Library, and my personal study."

"Th- this is all yours?" he asked.

Zelda nodded. "I have much too many books and no time to read them all. It's sad, really. But with so many books, certainly one of them must offer an explanation to your, er, _problem_. Care to take a look?" she asked, to which Link nodded. They spent much of the afternoon looking for a book, a pamphlet, _something_ to propose a statement on Link's situation lately.

Neither one of them found anything. At the end of the day, Link was tired, aggravated, and ready to go home. Zelda looked as exhausted as he felt, and he was just about to call it quits when he accidentally knocked a single book off its shelf. He picked it up. Nothing fancy by any means. It was an extremely old book by the look of it, and it had a musty odor to it. The cover was torn in several places, and the title was faded. He opened to the first page.

The pages were yellow, and some were falling out of the binding. And on the pages was a language Link didn't recognize at all. He called Zelda over to him, asking, "Does this make any sense to you whatsoever?"

She shook her head. "It's ancient Hylian text, a dialect I don't recognize. I only know a few words to begin with."

"Some Triforce of Wisdom bearer you are." Link tucked the book away in his pouch, then said to Zelda, "Not much we can do here. We should probably get going. It's late, and the people will want to know where you are."

"Let them question my absence. Let them see us together. I care not if they sentence me to death along with you."

"That will not happen. You _will_ stay alive no matter what. Is that clear?"

"Link, you talk like my father used to," Zelda laughed.

"I love you as if you were my own daughter. Does that count?" Link joked. Zelda giggled and nodded.

"I suppose it does," she said. "But you are right. It is late, and you without a doubt have business you need to attend to."

Link looked at her strangely, telling her that his night was free, as far as he knew.

"Ah, but that is where you are wrong. You told me yourself you hurt the heart of a young maiden, did you not?"

Link finally realized she was referring to Ashei. "I'd hardly call Ashei a maiden, your highness. Maiden sounds too much like 'damsel in distress.' Which by no means defines her in the least."

"Link, she _is_ a woman. And as a woman myself, I assure you she wants to be taken care of by men, not treated like rubbish," Zelda corrected. Link just stared sheepishly at the floor, and nodded glumly.

"I guess you're right," he said after some silence.

Zelda giggled again. "I'm always right, silly. I am, after all, the Princess of Hyrule."

They both laughed for a little bit, and walked out of the study. Link took the book out of his pocket as they retraced their steps through the castle. He fingered it lightly, looking at it the way a cat might examine its prey. "I wonder what this says," he told Zelda. "I've had this problem before: having the answer to something potentially right under my nose and yet completely unable to do anything with it." He was referring to all of the temples he had to work through, all the puzzles he had to solve.

Zelda nodded sympathetically. "It is a strange feeling, isn't it? sometimes it is stranger still to discover that something you have had with you for a long time and thought nothing of could be the answer to everything. Much like that book," she said, gesturing to the book. "Look at how old, and insignificant it is. Anybody could easily pass it by mistaking it for a useless object simply for space-filling purposes. But anything could be inside that book." She paused, and said, "Alas, if only one who knew how to read this were still alive."

Suddenly Link realized that he _did_ in fact know someone who knew how to read ancient texts. The answer was right under his nose the whole time, and he didn't even notice. Oh, the irony of Zelda's words.

"Zelda!" he exclaimed. "I know someone who can read this, I think. I hope. What's the quickest way back to your old tower? Er," he said, squinting, "preferably without having to go back into the sewers."

* * *

"What kind of a question is _that_?" Shad asked, obviously either confused or aggravated by Link's request. Link looked at him, the realization that Shad might actually not be able to read ancient Hylian just now hitting him.

Shad crossed his arms and gave a little _hmph_ before saying, "Of _course_ I can! It would be a near insult to scholars everywhere if I couldn't read the language of the old gods. Now, where is the document in question? Show it to me, chop chop! I haven't all day, you know!" Link wondered when Shad became so forceful as he produced the old book from his pouch. The scholar opened it and his eyes grew as wide as pie plates.

"This," he started, stuttering as he was obviously awed by whatever he was reading, "is..." Link looked at him as if to say " _Yes? Yes?"_ Shad looked at him and gave a dramatic pause before saying, "...a recipe for a delicious ancient Ordon pumpkin soup! Did you know that Ordon pumpkins have been useful for over three thousand years?"

Link and Zelda just stared at him, not amused. Shad shrugged and said, "Kidding. Totally a jest. It's not a recipe. It's actually some pretty useful information. You'd be surprised at how useful it actually is! Like, this is very, _very_ useful! I think. It sounds important. I hope its important. Don't you?"

"Why don't you just tell us what it says, scholar?" said a very impatient Link.

"Yes, well, of course. * _ahem_ * It says that if a person's shadow is brought to light," Shad said as he wiped his glasses with his tunic, "that only then can the shadow be conquered."

Link glared at him. "That's it?"

Shad more or less nodded. "Well, there is some more expanding on exactly what that means, but the overall message is the same. Doesn't it just sound delightful? I'm intrigued to see what you're going to do with it!" When Link didn't respond, Shad asked, "I mean, you _are_ going to use it somehow, aren't you?"

"Shad, you haven't given me very much to work with. In fact, what little you did tell me was a so vague that it honestly is almost completely useless. What am I supposed to do?"

"Well, don't ask me," the scholar replied, running his hand through his hair. "You're the hero. Figure it out." With that, Shad walked away, leaving Zelda and Link standing alone in the room.

"What does that even _mean_?" asked Link. Zelda shrugged and said she didn't know.

"Maybe I could help with that," an eerie voice spoke. Link looked around, but nobody else was there. Only he and Zelda stood in the dimly lit parlor, and he was looking straight at Zelda when the voice had spoken. And he certainly hadn't said anything.

So then what _was_ it?

A shape moved in one of the dark corners of the room. Link barely caught it in his peripheral vision, and his eyes bolted to the object. As quickly as it had appeared, it was gone.

"Did you see that?" Link nervously asked Zelda, reaching his hand to the sword on his back. Whatever this thing was, he couldn't take the chance of it harming Zelda. Not now. Not ever.

"You mortals really are interesting creatures," the same voice spoke, this time a little more audible than the first. Link could hear it more clearly. It was a deep, sinister voice that sounded very familiar. Link couldn't really think of where he would have heard such a mysterious voice, but he swore it was one he'd heard before.

"Show yourself," Link commanded, drawing the Master Sword from its sheath. He heard a sigh from a different corner, then the strange voice say to him, "Very well."

Link glanced at Zelda, who just looked at him with those deep blue eyes. She was scared. She was just as afraid as he was. He turned back to the corner. He heard footsteps. Any second the thing would show itself, and Link wasn't honestly sure if he was ready for it.

He held the Master Sword aloft, palms sweating, heart pounding, legs shaking, prepared to swing at anything that threatened him or Zelda.

The thing stepped out of the shadows, and Link's heart skipped a beat. He faintly heard Zelda gasp behind him. He stood there, shocked, paralyzed at what he saw. Suddenly he realized why the voice sounded so familiar and yet so different.

He was staring at himself.


	6. Chapter 5 - Two Sides of the Same Coin

_Hey again! I am really excited for this chapter, and I hope that you are as excited as I am. But, I have to put up a notice first, so here it is:_

 _UPDATES WILL BE SLOWED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM NOW UNTIL APRIL FOR ALL MY STORIES. I HAVE A SIGNIFICANT PART IN MY SCHOOL PLAY, CINDERELLA, AND SO I WILL HAVE A MUCH SHORTER TIME SPAN TO WRITE._

 _That said, I will take every opportunity to write I can. So hopefully those will still come somewhat regularly._

 _A BIG thanks goes out to miano53, TheObsessedBookworm, and Chameleon Eyes for reviewing the last chapter, and the rest of the story as well. Your support keeps this story going. So thank you._

 _Finally, this chapter is just a tad shorter than the others. I wanted to keep going but I felt that the ending I left with was the only thing that really fit for this chapter. So sorry, but I guess that's just the way the cookie_ _crumbles._

 _Now that all that's taken care of, let's dive into Hyrule, shall we?_

* * *

The being at which Link stared in terror was not exactly like him. It had his basic body shape and size in the exact proportions, right down to the shape of his pointed ears to the length of his eyebrows.

But the similarities ended there. Everything about it was pitch-black. Its tunic, its undershirt, its skin, its gauntlets and boots, even its hair seemed to be stained by jet-black ink. The only thing that wasn't black was its eyes, but they weren't any less menacing than the rest of it by any standards.

Its eyes had no pupils. And the corneas were blood-red. It was as if somebody gouged its eyes out and filled the sockets with blood. Human blood.

Link shook violently. He didn't even try to hide it in front of Zelda. He was scared. He was really scared.

"What," the thing said with a deep, dark chuckle, "is the Hero of Light, the bearer of the Triforce of _Courage_ , scared by his own shadow?"

"Y- you- you're my shadow?" Link sputtered, keeping his sword trained on the thing's face. He felt sweat roll down his forehead and cheeks. He could almost hear the _pit pat_ of his sweat on the ground as it dripped from all over his face. He didn't remember ever being this scared in his entire life. It wasn't that his shadow was particularly intimidating. It wasn't. He had seen far worse in the past year of adventuring.

But the very fact that the thing he was staring at was his own shadow was unnerving. Terrifying, even. It was one thing when Midna had hid inside his shadow. He trusted her, and plus he knew she was there the whole time.

But this thing? His _shadow_? Living as a part of him for his whole life, and he never even had an inkling that it even existed as _this_? And now it was living and breathing, literally talking to him?

The shadow crossed his arms, and grinned at Link. "You can put that sword down, kid."

"I'm not a kid," Link snapped.

"Kid, guy, whatever. It makes no difference. The point is that you don't need to fear me."

Link loosened his grip on the Master Sword. "I don't?" he asked, confused.

"Nope," his shadow replied. "Not yet, at least."

Link started to sheathe his blade, and Zelda grabbed his hand, keeping him from doing so. "You cannot trust him, Link!" she said forcefully. "He's a shadow!"

"A shadow, yes," the dark Link confirmed. "A demon, no. But the Princess is right. I'm your shadow. You have zero reason to trust me."

"What's that got to do with anything?" the real Link asked. At this point he realized he was just looking for an excuse to put his sword down. His shadow had given him said excuse, and now was taking it away from him. Could he trust his shadow, or could he not?

The shadow Link shook his head. "You don't get it, do you? What is it you said, Princess," he said as he gestured to Zelda, "when the Twilight Princess fled this world? I believe it was, 'Light and Shadow are two sides of the same coin,' was it not?" He turned back to Link. "The concept remains the same. You and I are, like light and shadow, two sides of the same coin. I am all the qualities that exist as part of you, but not the actual you. I'm the essence of the things that people don't like in other people, like hatred, mischief, thievery, dishonesty, blah blah blah. Basically," he said with a short pause, "I am the leftovers of your very personality."

Link continued to stare at him. What was he hinting at?

"What, you still don't get it?" the shadow said impatiently. He rushed forward and pinned Link against the wall by his arms. He leaned very close until their noses were literally millimeters away. Link trembled, wincing. The shadow breathed heavily, and Link swore he could smell the faint hint of blood on its breath. The shadow tightened his grip on Link's shoulders.

He spoke very slowly and clearly. "Our actions show themselves at different times. The way only one face of a coin can be visible at a time, so are the things we do. Haven't you noticed how the past year that all of your, well, _our_ actions have almost completely been brave, noble, and heroic? That was your light coming out. And that meant that my darkness had to stay in.

"But you see, when something stays in for too long, it builds up," Shadow Link said with a wicked grin. "It builds up, and up, and up, and up until suddenly the dam bursts and the thing being contained just overflows. You had your year of being Mr. Nice Guy, Link. And now it's my turn."

Zelda gasped behind him. Shadow Link turned around and pointed to her. "Your precious princess gets it, Link. Do you?"

Link shook his head. He was still too scared to "get" anything. The Master Sword nearly slipped from his hands from the perspiration on his fingertips.

"You might as well tell him, Zelda," the shadow said, grin widening. "Go ahead. If he hasn't gotten it already, he never will."

"You," Zelda said in disgust, "are what is causing Link to be so cruel lately. His outbursts, his horrid attitudes, everything. That was you, wasn't it?"

Shadow Link snapped his fingers into a point to Zelda. "Bingo."

Link's head started to spin. Suddenly it all made sense. He had thought he was just paranoid about not being able to control himself. And now he was right. Emotions began to swirl around in his head.

"Well, unfortunately," Shadow Link said, "your knowledge of my tampering with you takes the fun out of it now. But oh well. This actually opens up hundreds of new possibilities for what I can do to you."

Link couldn't take it anymore. He screamed in rage and slashed Shadow Link across the chest. The shadow dematerialized in a wisp of black vapor, and Link heard an audible laugh. Shadow Link's voice said, "Remember how I said you don't need to be afraid of me? I lied. Be very afraid of me."

Link felt more lightheaded, and he passed out.

* * *

 _Link..._

 _Link..._

 _LINK!_

 _SAVE ME!_

 _Link found himself face to face with Zelda, a panicked expression on her face. She screamed at him again to save him and he reached his hand out toward her. He felt a tug at his feet and saw himself slipping away from her. He screamed her name. She reached for his hand. Their fingertips barely brushed as Link continued to be pulled away. He cried out as her form got smaller and smaller until it was completely nonexistent._

 _And then the laughter started._

 _A deep, dark, awful sound of male laughter pierced the air. Link saw a new face in front of him. The face of pure evil, Ganondorf. Link yelled in terror. Ganondorf chuckled and turned around. Link continued to scream. Ganondorf turned around again, but Link saw that it wasn't Ganondorf at all. It was shadow Link._

 _Shadow Link reached a black hand out toward the real Link's face and laughed. Link couldn't stop screaming. It was all too horrible, too terrifying. His heart pounded. His head reeled. It felt like all he could do was scream._

 _Shadow Link's fingers were ten, seven, four, two inches away. Link just kept screaming. The fingers were still coming, now only centimeters away._

 _"Link," the shadow said, and again, "Link!"_

 _Link stopped his howls of fear for a moment and looked at his shadow, slightly perplexed._

 _"LINK! WAKE UP!" the shadow yelled._

* * *

Link bolted awake and nearly collided with Zelda. Her eyes were red and her cheeks wet. Link could tell she'd been crying. She gasped and whispered, "Oh, thank the goddesses," before letting herself fall into his arms. He just held her and kissed her wet cheek.

"Hey," he said. "It's going to be alright."

"How can you even say such a thing?" Zelda cried. "That, that _thing_ just appeared out of thin air and suddenly gives us a vague threat to your life and you're saying it's all just going to be fine? Link, think about what this means for the future!"

Link put his index finger on her rouged lips. "If there's one thing I've learned from being a hero," he said, stroking her hair, "it's that you have to learn not to think about what the future may hold. You just have to live in the present."

"So you're not scared?" Zelda asked.

"Far from it. I'm plenty scared, in fact, I'm terrified! But I have to choose to look past all that, because I can't do anything about it right now. All I need to worry about is who I am and what I'm doing right now. Nothing else matters."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that you are an extremely beautiful woman and I'm very glad that you're part of my here and now. Because I love you."

He kissed her, and all further conversation ceased.

And there they sat together, Hero and Princess choosing to focus on the present. Which was, of course, for the two of them, each other.


	7. Chapter 6 - Already Lost

"Link! Your highness! What is going on? We heard screams, and then sobs. Is everything alright?"

Auru's booming voice rang through the room moments before he entered without waiting for a response, followed closely by Ashei and Byrne. All three had similar looks of concern on their faces.

Link separated himself from Zelda and hauled himself to his feet.

"Everything's fine," he lied.

Auru crossed his arms. His raised eyebrows and squinted eyes told Link he didn't entirely believe him, but eventually he nodded and said, "Alright, then. I'll leave you to it. Are you alright, Your Highness?"

Zelda nodded from where she still sat on the floor, and with that, Auru turned and walked out of the room, Ashei on his heels. She paused to glare at Link, all previous concern gone, before following her superior, leaving Byrne with Link and Zelda. He didn't move.

"If you don't mind my asking," he began, "what just happened?"

Sharing a nervous glance with Zelda, Link found himself honestly unsure of what to say. All that talk about the _present_ hadn't left him with much thought about the _future_ , which, unfortunately, had all too quickly become the present. He hadn't anticipated being expected to explain everything so soon.

"Link," Byrne said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "be real with me. I want to know what happened. So please, just tell me."

Taking a deep breath Link helped Zelda to her feet and recounted his story of his conversation with his shadow, or whatever it was, and his dream, and his conversation with Zelda, and how all that led to their current conversation.

Though he looked a little perplexed, Byrne nodded slowly. "A confrontation with your shadow? Rather fascinating, and intimidating, no doubt." He paused, his mouth wide open, maybe to ask another question, then shook his head and said, "I'll give you two some space. Whenever you're ready to talk about it further, don't hesitate to come. I have a few more questions myself, but that's not important right now."

Thanking Byrne, who proceeded to leave quickly, Link turned to Zelda.

"Are you okay?" he asked, reaching for her hand.

She nodded, but avoided his gaze and pulled away from his touch as she did. "I will be in the castle should you need anything. I have, um, some work to finish."

With that she planted a kiss on the side of his cheek, handed him a small note, and followed Byrne.

 _Well, that was abrupt_ , Link thought, then shrugged. Whatever.

He made his way out of the Resistance's hideout and back into the castle courtyard, where he found Rusl hammering away at a dummy with his sword. Upon noticing Link, Rusl put down his sword and took off his helmet.

"Link," he said, "I know you're probably very busy, but I've been meaning to tell you that I'm very grateful to you for taking care of my son. Thank you."

Link, somewhat surprised but all the same flattered by Rusl's kindness, bobbed his head and said, "It was nothing, sir. Colin's grown so much, I'm just glad I got to be a part of that growth."

"Me too," Rusl replied, patting him on the arm. "You're a fine young man, Link. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask me." Link nodded again and as he walked away, Rusl went back to training with the dummy.

On his way out of the castle courtyard he passed a guard. Link prepared to be arrested again, or to run, but when the guard stopped, he simply saluted Link.

"Lord Hero," he said with a nod. Then he walked away. Link just stood there baffled.

 _Strange,_ he thought. _Not even a suspicious gaze._ Maybe the note Zelda handed him had something to do with it. He pulled out Zelda's note and read it to himself.

 _I managed to get you a royal pardon. Your name is hereby cleared of any charges. You're welcome. Love, Zelda._

Link smiled. She truly was an amazing woman, using what little power she had at this time to take care of him.

Sure enough, as Link walked through the town square, the soldiers simply nodded to him. The townspeople, meanwhile, flocked to him in numbers, about half of them swooning over him and asking for his autograph, the other half asking questions like "Are you alright?" or "Are you still wanted?" or "How did you survive your execution, Master Hero?" Link ignored many of these questions and simply smiled and waved as he walked through the crowd.

When he was out of Castle Town, and away from the gazillions of people, he stopped. Realizing he had no plan of where to go or what to do he looked around. Hyrule Field was peaceful. Maybe there was nothing to do. What a bizarre feeling.

In the end, he walked over to the old theatre. The stone was still crumbling from years and years of heavy erosion, but some of it was still intact. Link sat down on one of the stone seats. Gazing off into the distance, he had a grand view of the sparkling Lake Hylia in all its splendor. The water looked so serene from up here. It was calming. Soothing.

"It's breathtaking, isn't it?"

The sound of his own voice scared him, especially because he hadn't said anything. Alarmed, he leapt to his feet and whirled around to face the intruder.

It was Dark Link. Who else could it have been, really?

"What are you doing here?", Link demanded, drawing his sword. Dark Link put up his hands defensively.

"Easy, kiddo," the shadow said with a slight chuckle. "I come in peace."

"What do you want?" growled Link.

"Relax! Even the evil parts of your soul enjoy a nice view every now and again, thank you very much."

"I don't believe you."

Dark Link sighed. He rolled his crimson eyes and said, "You're really intent on getting rid of me, aren't you? I told you: I'm not an immediate threat to you right now."

"Yes, and as soon as you said that you grabbed my shoulders, pinned me against a wall, and told me that you were lying."

Another chuckle as the shadow leaned in towards Link conspiratorially. "How do you know I wasn't lying about that?"

Link stared blankly ahead of him. How _did_ he know? He couldn't trust a thing this... _thing_ said.

Dark Link's chuckle turned into a full-blown cackle. "You're so unsure of yourself, kid!"

Link grit his teeth; why did his shadow keep calling him that?

"I mean-" said Dark Link with a shake of his head, "I'm _ashamed_ to even be part of you! That's your fatal flaw, you know? You believe anything you're told. You second-guess yourself. You are too naïve, too _insecure_ to be anyone's hero, much less the _Princess_ of _Hyrule_."

"That was more than one flaw," Link spat before swinging the Master Sword at his shadowy adversary.

Unfortunately, as he did, Dark Link smoothly backflipped into the air and landed on top of the blade. Grinning wickedly, he leaned down to Link's face and pressed his jet-black forehead against Link's, and breathed, " _You. Are. Worthless._ "

And with that, he kicked Link in the chest and flipped back onto the ground. Link hit the stone steps with a _thud_ and groaned. His shield, still strapped to his back, had taken a majority of the impact but his upper back still hurt.

 _Fight through it,_ he thought. _It's just a bruise._

He raised his sword again and swung with all his might at Dark Link, who just stepped back and avoided the attack altogether.

"Hiding behind a fancy sword, are you? What, you think that just because you have the 'blade of evil's bane' that you can win easily?" he asked slyly.

Link answered the question by taking another swing at him, an effort that proved to be just as effective as the first two strokes.

"Well, I have news for you," Dark Link continued, holding out his hand. A dark cloud of black smoke danced around his fingertips, and the smoke began to expand into a long, flat shape about the same size as Link's sword. When the smoke had cleared, Dark Link held an exact replica of the Master Sword, except the hilt and blade were black, the jewel on the handle was red, and the Triforce on the blade was turned on its end so that it appeared upside down.

"A sword's edge is only as sharp as the intellect of its wielder's mind. Its blade carries only as much force as the strength of the hands it is placed in. And its magic is only as powerful as the skill of its master. It doesn't matter how much "courage" you have. Your sword is useless."

Moving almost too quickly to follow, Dark Link raked his blade across Link's abdomen.

"Kid, he whispered, "you've already lost."

Link heard the slash before he felt the pain. For a moment, he simply watched as his tunic turned a deep shade of red, before all at once his stomach exploded with agony. As his knees buckled and he slumped to the ground in pain, Link could make out the fading sound of Dark Link's maniacal laughter.

" _Adieu, '_ Hero of Twilight.'"

And Link blacked out for the billionth time.

* * *

 _"_ _Link! Please!"_

 _There was Zelda's voice again. Just as urgent as the last time he heard her cry like that._

 _He sprinted toward the direction of her voice, but no matter how fast he moved his legs seemed to carry him nowhere._

 _"Hurry!" Zelda cried, her already distant voice fading fast. "He's taking me!"_

 _Link wanted to call out to her, to ask where she was going, to ask who was taking her, but he couldn't make a sound._

 _He knew this was a dream. He remembered blacking out, and he knew judging from his pitch-black surroundings there was no way he could be conscious. Yet, there was still a part of him that was convinced that he needed to keep running. But although he continued to run as fast as he possibly could, he went nowhere._

Relax, _he thought to himself,_ it's only a dream. She'll be fine.

 _Still, his dreams were becoming so realistic lately, it was hard to tell what was and wasn't real anymore. Even if it was just a dream, was it possible it could still have an effect on his actual life?_

 _He needed to wake up. He willed his dream self to slap itself in the face, and just as quickly as his dream had started, it was over._

 _All in all, though, he had a feeling this did not bode well for Zelda._

* * *

When he woke up, Link's first instinctive thought was to check on Zelda.

Well, actually, his first instinctive thought was to check his still-bleeding, still-agonizing wound in his midsection, but _after_ that he thought to check on Zelda. Wincing, he got himself to his feet. He took a look at his stomach, poked it gingerly, winced again, and breathed a sigh of relief. Although the bleeding wasn't stopping, Dark Link's slash luckily (or maybe deliberately) hadn't cut very deep, and Link was close enough to Castle Town to walk without wearing himself out too much. Even though the injury would hurt for a while, it wouldn't be fatal.

The journey back to the city gates in reality didn't take longer than probably five minutes, but to Link it felt like an eternity. The pain didn't subside hardly at all, and every time Link looked down and saw his own blood dripping onto the grass said pain seemed to intensify considerably.

When he finally walked through the Eastern Gate, he was of course greeted by another group of townspeople who began asking him even more questions. Upon seeing Link's bleeding stomach and the limp in his step, however, the group dispersed, leaving Link with two guards who offered to help him to the doctor's office. Funny to think that they'd all been out for his head such a short time ago.

"Doctor Borville!" one of the guards, who'd previously introduced himself as Pierre, shouted into the office. "You have a patient, sir."

"Eh?" came the faint reply of the old man. "Bah! I am _much_ to busy to treat the likes of these street scum."

"Sir, you haven't seen this one," said the other guard, whose name was Rom. "Besides, his wound needs treatment immediately."

"Bah, I said! Bah! Away with you! My work must _not_ be interrupted!"

" _Sir!_ " shouted Pierre rather forcefully. "Your _work_ involves treating the ailments and injuries of the citizens of Hyrule! At the very least this one _is not a Zora!_ "

Silence.

Then shuffling of feet.

Then the doctor relented. "Fine, fine. Bring him into the examination room."

The two guards did as they were told.

The doctor hadn't changed a bit since Link had seen him last, except maybe his hair had gotten a little whiter. He wasn't particularly pleasant to Link, but at least took his job seriously. Within ten minutes the doctor had bandaged Link's wound and told him flatly he would make a full recovery. He muttered something under his breath about not "exerting himself too much" or something, but, given that he was muttering, Link didn't understand all of what he said.

"Well, Lord Hero," Borville said, rolling his eyes, "it seems my work here is done. That will be one hundred and fifty rupees, please." He held out his hand, anticipating Link's payment.

Link reached for his wallet, but at that moment a third guard burst into the doctor's office.

"Rom! Pierre! Sir Link! Come quickly!" the guard exclaimed through deep breaths; evidence of heavy sprinting.

"What is it, Boll?" Pierre asked, putting a hand on the sword strapped to his side.

"It's the castle! It's- it's-"

"Spit it out, boy! What is it?" Rom put a forceful hand on Boll's shoulder.

"Sirs, Hyrule Castle is under attack! It's burning!"

Link painfully realized that Zelda was still inside the castle.


	8. Chapter 7 - A New Adventure

_A/N_

 _Since I didn't do an author's note last time, I suppose I should do one now?_

 _First thing's first: This story has 2,500 views, which is awesome. Like seriously, to others that might not be a huge number but I am literally ecstatic right now. So a big thank you to everyone who read this story and any of my others._

 _Second: Thanks for being patient with me through all my long, long update spans. I know it's kinda annoying to read a story in bits and pieces after long periods of time, so I think the next story I write (after finishing Return to Termina) will be completely finished before I publish it, just to make the reading "experience" better, I guess. So yeah._

 _Third: Rift of Time is dead. I decided after a lot of thought to delete it. Maybe one day I'll go rewrite it, but looking back the story itself honestly didn't go anywhere. I will say, though, that the general concept of the story is still one I want to pursue, so don't be surprised if one day it resurfaces. And if you didn't like it to begin with, then you should be happy._

 _Enjoy the chapter. And just for the record, I don't own anything in Zelda except for my OCs._

* * *

Hyrule Castle was in flames, and the walls crumbled around Link with every step he took. Nevertheless, he managed to reach the Throne Room in a matter of minutes, followed closely by the soldiers, Rom and Boll.

Only one thing bothered Link about the state of the castle: there were no monsters. Not even dead ones. The castle was clearly under attack, but there was no sign whatsoever of what was leading or carrying out the assault. Whatever had attacked had either completely vanished or had hidden itself.

He kept moving. He couldn't afford to be distracted, not now. Zelda needed him. And an absence of monsters only made it that much easier to reach her.

The trio came to a halt in front of the Throne Room, ready to enter. Link took a deep breath and was about to step into the grand chamber when Rom quietly said his name.

"Yes?" he growled, because this was no time for talking.

"Your wound," said Rom, pointing to Link's midsection. Sure enough, the wound had reopened. Blood seeped through the bandages and Link's already bloodstained tunic.

"Are you going to be alright?" asked Boll nervously. "Maybe you should stay behind, give yourself a break-"

"I'm fine," Link cut in. "I'll be fine."

Rom began to protest, but not even the goddesses themselves could keep Link out of whatever fight awaited them. He was Hyrule's hero.

He was Zelda's hero.

Reluctantly, Rom nodded, and together the three pushed open the large bronze doors that led to the Throne Room's grand balcony. They made their way up the stairs beyond, and found an entire battalion of Hyrulean soldiers facing Zelda's throne. They were stationed just so that Link couldn't see who, or what, was sitting on the throne, but something told Link that whatever it was, it wasn't Zelda.

Right on cue, the ranks split right down the middle in perfect unison, each group the exact same distance away from the stretch of carpet leading to the throne. It gave Link the perfect view of who was seated there.

It was Dark Link. Of course it was Dark Link.

His shadow was slouched, head propped up against by his palm as he leaned on one of the armrests, legs crossed. He smirked at Link and waved his free hand at the soldiers.

"Link," he said with a wicked chuckle, "Allow me to introduce you to my army."

He snapped his fingers and six soldiers obediently stepped forward. They split off into pairs and grabbed Link and his comrades, pinning their arms behind their backs.

"What in the name in the goddesses do you think you're doing?" Link snarled, to which Dark Link simply chuckled and, straightening languidly, raised his hands in an innocent gesture.

"Why, I'm just establishing the 'New and Improved' Hyrule. Or maybe I should call it 'Hyrule: Under New Management,'" His tone was coy, his smirk malicious.

Link just glared at him, unamused.

"The point is," continued Dark Link, "I've taken control of Hyrule's army. I have all of Hyrule's soldiers. I am unstoppable." He flashed Link a vicious smile.

Sneaking a quick glance to Rom and Boll, Link said, "Not all of them."

Dark Link's smile vanished. Slowly, he rose from his seat on the throne and approached his captives. Each step he took made Link's heart pound harder and harder. For someone he supposedly didn't need to be afraid of, Dark Link was more than intimidating.

Dark Link stopped in front of Link, so close he could smell the shadow's breath. There was a metallic tang to it that Link desperately hoped wasn't blood.

"You're right," said Dark Link. "It appears that I missed a couple. Allow me to correct my mistake."

He raised his hand, and once more produced the Dark Master Sword. Link braced himself for another strike, but Dark Link instead turned to Rom. Rom squirmed violently, but couldn't break free of the hands holding him captive. Dark Link licked his lips as he pulled the sword back.

"No!" Link cried frantically, struggling against his captors. "Get away from him, you monster!" He wanted to shut his eyes, but somehow he couldn't look away.

He watched in horror as Dark Link plunged the ebon blade straight through Rom's chest.

For a moment, Rom stayed upright, eyes wide and mouth gasping, but then he toppled backwards off the sword. With an awful thud, he crumpled to the ground, lifeless limbs crooked and sightless eyes still wide open, a grotesque expression of agony permanently frozen on his face.

Seeing Link's horrified expression, Dark Link gave a maniacal cackle and said, "Oh you think this is the Grand Finale? Kid, I haven't even finished the Prelude!"

Just as quickly as it had fallen, Rom's corpse stood up. Its expression didn't change and it moved jerkily, like a marionette doll being controlled by a young child. Grinning wickedly, Dark Link pointed his bloodied sword at Boll.

Almost robotically, Rom drew his sword and marched straight over to his comrade, who looked beyond terrified. He squirmed, but the soldiers holding him did not let go.

Link knew what was was going to happen before it did. Dark Link hadn't killed Rom, but rather had somehow taken control of him, just as he had the dozens of other guards in the throne room. Rom was completely under the shadow's influence.

And now, said shadow was going to use that influence to get rid of Boll.

In one fluid, merciless stroke, Rom slashed Boll's throat. Blood spurted from the wound. Boll gagged, and his knees buckled as he grabbed at his bleeding neck. In desperation, he reached a blood-soaked hand out to Link, before he fell flat on his face, dead. Rom sheathed his sword and returned to Dark Link's side. Link just stood there, stunned, watching blood pool beneath Boll's body.

"Do you see now, Link? You can't defeat me," said Dark Link, that wicked grin still plastered on his face. "Like I said: you've already lost."

The shadow pointed his sword at Link, and Rom began to move once more. He raised his sword to strike.

 _Chink!_

The sound of metal striking metal surprised Link. What surprised him even more was the metal hand now attached to Rom's chainmail tunic. The hand was connected to a chain which immediately began to retract, and Rom was slammed to the ground, his sword clattering away across the floor.

The other soldiers drew their weapons, but even as they did an enormous hawk flew into the room. Distracted and confused, the soldiers looked around just as a large explosion tore through the throne room and sent dozens of them flying.

Not unlike a small child throwing a temper tantrum, Dark Link flailed his arms, sword still in hand, and stamped a foot, roaring, "What in the name of the goddess _is going on_?"

Several soldiers, unfortunately standing too close, got slashed as he raged. Meanwhile, Byrne rushed into the throne room, holding a spell tome in one hand.

"INFERNO!" he shouted, and instantly a large fireball erupted from the tome and incinerated a group of the soldiers.

Link kneed one of his captors in the groin, giving him enough time to throw the other over his shoulder. Some other soldiers came after him, but the Master Sword made quick work of them. He ran over to Byrne and stationed himself so that they stood back-to-back.

"Thanks," he said as he slashed a guard.

"Think nothing of it." Byrne launched another fireball. "The others should be entering right...about...now."

Sure enough, as Byrne said it, Rusl and Ashei both entered the fray, slicing and dicing their way through the soldiers with little effort. Link watched as Dark Link furiously ordered wave after wave after wave of soldiers to attack, only to watch them be cut down at the hand of one of the four fighters.

Another explosion rocked the room, sending Dark Link's army into even more pandemonium.

"That," Byrne yelled over the chaos, "is Auru's way of telling us it's our cue to leave."

"And go where? Leaving through the castle would take forever!" Link shouted back. "They'd catch up to us!"

Byrne responded by running to the entrance of the room, headed for the balcony. "That's precisely why we're not going through the castle!"

"What?"

"We're going to jump! Come! It'll be fun!"

And Byrne leapt over the balcony.

Link was strangely reminded of the time he jumped off of the Great Bridge into Lake Hylia to escape from a fire. Only this time he was certain there was no lake to break his fall.

Ashei appeared at his side. "Link," she said, "Just trust us, yeah? We're here to rescue you. And unfortunately the balcony is the only way out. Now, are you coming, or not?" she asked as she followed Byrne's example and jumped.

Taking a deep breath, Link sprinted at the wall and vaulted over the railing. For a moment, he seemed to hang, suspended in midair, then he dropped. Luckily, he landed on one of the Castle's blue rooftops and rolled forward to reduce the impact. Byrne and Ashei were ahead of him, and as he followed them closely he turned back to see Rusl trailing him.

"Not much longer until we reach Castle Town!" Ashei shouted over her shoulder.

"We're not going to the hideout?" asked Link, not reducing his speed.

"Too risky!" replied Rusl. "And there's not enough time. We need to go to Telma's!"

As Link kept running, he realized that he still hadn't found Zelda, and his heart sank.

* * *

Telma's Bar had recently become Telma's Bar and Inn, and as a result of the expansion the establishment had seen an increase in patrons.

And of course they all wanted Link's autograph. Every. Last. One. Of. Them.

Rusl and Telma shooed them all away as they begged and pleaded to meet the Hero, who in turn took a seat at one of the tables.

"Goddesses, Link," Once she had finished shooing away the customers, Telma approached him herself. "You're bleeding, lad! Here, let me help you. Shad!"

"Yes?" Shad's voice emanated from another room.

"Bring me some warm water and a rag! Quick!" Telma turned back to Link. "Sorry 'bout that, honey. Now don't you worry, we'll have you fixed up in no time."

Tripping over himself and nearly spilling the entire bowl of water, Shad appeared and handed Telma what she had asked for. "Hullo there, Link," he said with a pleasant nod. "Find anything else about the Oocca, or the City in the Sky? Oh! I just remembered, I discovered something absolutely _brilliant_ while I was perusing the royal archives! Evidently, the-"

"Shad!" Auru boomed. "Leave the boy alone! Can't you see he's hurt?"

"Ah, yes. Sorry," said Shad, and left almost as quickly as he had come.

Telma dipped the rag into the bowl and addressed Link. "Come on, now, hon'. I need you to take your shirt off."

Link's faced reddened as he uncomfortably took off his tunic. He didn't like to be... _exposed_ in front of ladies.

"You don't have to worry about anything, Link." Telma gave a laugh. "It's not like Princess Zelda is going to come in here and see you with your shirt off."

In a mixture of embarrassment, rage, and sadness, Link scowled at Telma. "No, she certainly isn't," he murmured, then told his friends about Zelda's disappearance and how he hadn't managed to find her. Telma hung her head sadly, and apologized to Link for her insensitivity while she dabbed his injured stomach with the cloth.

"The real issue, though," said Auru, "is if that _thing_ at the castle had anything to do with her disappearance. And, for that matter, what's been going on in all of Hyrule lately."

"I have a few ideas," Link replied as Telma wrapped a bandage around his stomach. Auru nodded approvingly, and Link continued. "The night I slept with- I mean the night I slept in Zelda's quarters-"

"Wait," Ashei interrupted, slightly raising her hand. "You spent the night _in Princess Zelda's quarters_? That takes some _serious_ guts."

Link nodded sheepishly. "Why else do you think I was to be executed?"

"Well, Zelda told us that you were accused of a crime you didn't commit but she didn't give all the details," Ashei told him.

"Such as the fact that you were making love to her," Shad called from the other room.

" _Shut up, you lout_!" Ashei seemed scandalized. " _He did no such thing_!"

"As I was saying," Link resumed, "that night, the guards who attempted to arrest me were...different, I guess. I couldn't really identify what was wrong with them but I knew something wasn't right. Now I know: Dark Link had already corrupted them, along with the Royal Officials who ordered my execution."

"...which is exactly why nothing Zelda said to them could change their mind," Ashei finished Link's thought. "And as for all the things you said to me about..."

"That was Dark Link, too," Link told her, bowing his head. "I'm so sorry, Ashei. I swear I never meant any of that."

She approached him, and Link braced himself for a slap or a punch or something of that sort.

Instead, she embraced him and said, "I forgive you. I'm sorry I've been so rude to you lately, yeah? And also for misjudging you. I never should have doubted you, because after all, you're _way_ too nice to say anything like that to me under normal circumstances."

"Whatever circumstances these are, they certainly aren't normal." Rusl piped up, obviously trying to lighten the mood. Link chuckled a little.

Byrne cleared his throat. "Back to the issue at hand. What's our next course of action?" he said, and looked to Link.

Link began to speak but Auru shook his head. "Oh, no. With all due respect, Lord Hero, you're in no condition to do anything physically challenging just yet. You need rest."

"Auru, I appreciate your concern, but-"

"Auru is right, Link. You need to recharge," Rusl cut in, resting a gentle hand on Link's shoulder. "Pushing yourself too far will in result in exhausting yourself, or worse, seriously injuring yourself. We can't have either. Get some sleep."

"But-"

"That's an order, Link," said Auru forcefully but gently. "Good night."

Link nodded reluctantly, seeing his protests were falling upon deaf ears. He made his way into one of the guest rooms of the inn and crawled into the warm down sheets.

His head hit the pillow and he feel asleep.

* * *

 _"Link! What are you doing here?"_

 _Link looked around. He stood in a dimly lit room with strange teal-colored glyphs adorning the walls. In the center of the room, a fountain frothed and oozed dark liquid. A throne with similar glyphs stood on a raised platform at the far side of the room._

 _Link knew this room, just like he knew the person who spoke to him._

 _He was in the Palace of Twilight, and he was speaking to its Princess._

 _Midna._

 _"Hello? Link? Can you hear me?" She waved a hand in front of his face. He nodded weakly. A knot formed in his throat, preventing him from saying anything. What was there to say to the woman who left for all eternity without even thinking to say goodbye?_

 _"Is this real?" Link said softly, unable to believe his eyes._

 _"Why are you here, Link?" asked Midna. Her orange hair slowly swayed side to side as she moved. She had taken her headpiece off, and her voluminous locks cascaded down her shoulders the way Zelda's did when she wasn't wearing a tiara._

 _She was almost as beautiful as Zelda. Almost._

 _"I don't know," said Link finally. "Where even are we?"_

 _"Something serious is happening to the gap between our realms, and it's allowed our consciousnesses to interact while we slumber." Midna looked thoughtful. "Something's upset the balance between Light and Darkness. Has anything unusual happened in Hyrule lately?"_

 _"Lately I've been dreaming of a dark place where Zelda screams my name, and I run to her but somehow never reach her in time. And..." Link trailed off, then cleared his throat and continued. "...and my shadow has somehow crossed into the Light World." Link recounted Zelda's disappearance and Dark Link's usurpation of her throne._

 _"Fire, Love, and Wind," Midna cursed. "I knew it. Otherwise you wouldn't be here. Goddesses,_ _Link. Your shadow? How could this happen?"_

 _"You tell me. After all, he's from your world, isn't he?" Link's voice was harsh, and Midna seemed a bit taken aback._

 _"I destroyed the Mirror of Twilight to eliminate the possibility of this kind of thing happening," she said, and Link's chest tightened._

 _"Well, it looks like that hasn't worked out too well for you, has it?"_

 _"Link." Midna frowned at him. "My leaving was just as painful for me as it was for you. But I won't apologize. It was the right thing to do."_

 _"And to leave without telling me? To not even think to say goodbye? Was_ that _the right thing to do?" Link shouted angrily._

 _"I didn't want..." Midna's voice trailed off. "I thought it would be better if you didn't know immediately. I didn't want to hurt you."_

 _"We both know that's not true, Midna." Link turned away from her. "You never cared about hurting me when you manipulated me, bribed me, blackmailed me into doing what you wanted, all for your selfish gain." He glanced back over his shoulder. "You treated me like your pet, like an animal, even when I wasn't a wolf. So don't tell me that you didn't want to hurt me."_

 _Midna sighed. "Are we going to keep going back and forth like this all night? You do have a kingdom to save, after all."_

 _There was a long pause. Neither one of them said anything for a while._

 _Link finally broke the silence. "Do you know him?"_

 _"What?"_

 _"Do you know my shadow? Dark Link," he clarified, his back still to her._

 _Midna slowly shook her head. "I had no idea he existed before tonight."_

 _More silence._

 _"So, what do we do now?" Link asked._

 _"That's simple. I need to come back to your realm, and you need to help me."_

 _She needed to come back. Of course she did. As if the gods hadn't been cruel enough to Link in the past month._

 _He should have been glad to hear her say it. His heart should have soared, because nothing should have made him happier than to hear of a possibility of her coming back._

 _But he also couldn't deny that she left him without warning. She let him walk away from her, leaving Zelda to break the news of her departure to him. That was wrong._ _And to hear her say that she needed to return only proved to Link that Midna didn't truly care about him, or about Zelda, or about the World of Light. She only used people to do what she wanted, or what was absolutely necessary in the moment._

 _He just sighed and asked, "And just how do I help you?"_

 _"That's less simple. There is another way, besides the mirror, to cross the gap. It's risky, but it's there," Midna replied. She paused, perhaps waiting for Link to look scared or apprehensive._

 _"Just tell me what to do," said Link._

 _"If you trust me, head to Arbiter's Grounds once more. Find the mirror chamber. Strike the large black stone with the Master Sword."_

 _Another pause. Link waited for her to finish but she said nothing else. "That's it?" he asked, to which she nodded once. "Well, that doesn't sound that risky."_

 _"Maybe not for you, but for me its incredibly dangerous. Because the stone will have nothing to reflect the gate onto except the blade of your sword, the window of opportunity I'll have to cross before I lose the gate entirely is going to be very short. How short, I don't know."_

 _"Huh._ _" Now Link was apprehensive. "How will you get back? I mean, I assume you're going to leave again once this is all over, aren't you?"_

 _Midna just looked at him, unimpressed. "Now is not the time. Look, I promise you it will work. And anyway, it's our only option, as much as I wish it wasn't."_

 _"Anything else I should know?" Link asked. Midna shook her head._

 _"I'll be seeing you soon, I suppose, Link. May Hylia give you unyielding protection. You'll certainly need it."_

* * *

Link awoke with a start. Rubbing his head, he sat up and tried to comprehend what he had just seen in his sleep, the dream fresh in his mind.

If he had been asked earlier if he wanted Midna to come back, he would have said yes. It wasn't that he wanted her to stay away from him; he didn't. A part of him missed her. But another, larger part of him knew that even when she did return things would never be the same between them. Whatever feelings he had for the Twilight Princess he had replaced with feelings for Zelda. So then, since the only point of Midna's return would be to help save Zelda, would it even be worth it for him to see her again? And if it wasn't, why was he so bothered by the fact that she was coming back at all?

Eventually Link decided that his only option was to get to the Twilight Realm as soon as he could, so he promptly got out of bed and announced to the Resistance that he was leaving.

"What?" exclaimed Auru? "Link, you've had one night of rest and your wound hasn't even begun to heal yet."

"It's fine. I'm fine. I need to leave."

"Absolutely not," said Ashei. "You're injured."

"Listen." Link crossed his arms stubbornly. "I have to go. I'm Hyrule's protector, and I'm not about to sit idly twiddling my thumbs while my princess is in danger. I'm going, and nothing you can say will change my mind."

Auru put a hand to his chin as he pondered Link's words. Finally, he sighed and said, "You're a determined one, I'll give you that. Goddesses, if I could only be as resilient as you. Alright, you can go."

Link grinned, and Ashei put up a finger. "On one condition," she said. "I'm coming with you."

"What?"

"Are you deaf?" she chuckled. "I'm coming with you. I mean, somebody's gotta watch your back, yeah?" She looked to Auru, who nodded approvingly.

"It's only fair that we provide you with backup, wherever you're going. It certainly wouldn't do Hyrule any good to have its hero killed because of something as foolish as misadventure," Auru told Link, and gave him a light pat on the shoulder.

Link nodded, almost begrudgingly, though he knew in his heart that his friends were right. It wouldn't do Zelda any good if something like that were to happen. Still, if he didn't know better he might've thought his friends didn't trust him.

With a few goodbyes, Link and Ashei left the bar. "So where're we going, exactly?" asked Ashei.

"Gerudo Desert," Link replied. "We're going to an ancient prison."

"Sounds dangerous." Ashei grinned fiercely. "Let's go."

Link held up a hand. "Slow down, Ashei. I have to get a few things, first. Come to my house with me."

The early hour left the streets almost empty. Occasionally a dog ran across the pavement or a couple of shady-looking men engaged in some kind of suspicious behavior, but ultimately there wasn't much going on at all.

There were also very few guards on watch now, which Link supposed was to be expected from the incident at the castle. He warned the guards he saw not to trust any of their comrades who were posted inside the castle. Some of them gave him inquisitive looks and others called him an idiot, but if it kept them safe he didn't mind.

 _First thing's first,_ he thought. _I need to get supplies._ He looked down at his torn, bloodstained tunic. _And maybe a new shirt._

He set out for the residential wing of the west road, where he entered his house. It was funny that it was still his house but he had only slept there for one night, even though he'd hardly left the area at all. Such was the life of a hero, he supposed.

After a few moments of rummaging around, he threw off his tunic and tossed it aside (only when Ashei wasn't looking, of course), and grabbed the first replacement he could find, a light gray shirt. Once he had changed he packed a satchel of food rations and a canteen of water, and decided to keep a bottle full of red potion with him, just in case. He was nearly ready to start his new journey, but he needed one more thing: Epona.

Link took a deep breath, adjusted his sword and shield, and walked briskly to the stables. He unhitched Epona from the fence, nodded to the stableboy, and mounted his horse. Ashei did the same to her own steed, and, with a strange feeling of nostalgia, Link began the long trek to Lake Hylia, Ashei at his side.

It was time for a new adventure.

* * *

Zelda awoke to find herself in her own bed.

"Strange," she said to herself. "I don't remember returning to my chambers." She looked around, and saw that everything was as it was supposed to be. Funny, she could have sworn she remembered Hyrule Castle being in flames before she fell asleep. Of course, everything in her memory was hazy, so for all she knew she could have been hallucinating.

Shoving the thought aside, (after all, she _was_ in her room, obviously _not_ in flames) she yawned and stretched. She swung her legs over the side of her bed and let her feet hit the cold floor. The hem of her nightgown flopped over her feet the way it did every morning when she woke up.

"Good morning, sunshine."

Alarmed at the sound of the voice, Zelda whirled around, and saw Dark Link sitting in the very same chair Link had spent the evening in mere nights ago.

Dark Link chuckled and asked, "Did you sleep well?"

Zelda was too shocked to reply.

"You're probably wondering what in the world I'm doing here, in your room, watching you wake."

"I won't lie," said Zelda feebly, "I am a little curious."

"Funny how that works, isn't it? If I remember correctly your precious hero did the same thing the other day, and you never seemed to care much then." The shadow had a malicious grin seared onto his face that made Zelda more uncomfortable each second she spent looking at it.

"That was different," Zelda growled. "What do you want?"

Dark Link smiled coyly. "Oh, darling, I already have what I want." His implication was clear to Zelda: she was in his custody.

This time it was Zelda's turn to laugh. "Come now, you don't really think you can kidnap me, do you? Here, in Hyrule Castle? Why, if I so much as whisper my soldiers will-"

"Your soldiers are mine, silly girl. _Mine_. I've taken control of every single one of them." Dark Link nimbly leapt from his chair and wrapped a cold hand around her neck. His grip was strong, like Link's. But unlike Link his strength had no gentleness, no sympathy. Zelda desperately gasped for air, but the shadow was clearly not about to give her any. She squirmed to break free of his grip, to no avail.

Dark Link cackled, then let go. Zelda fell to her knees, panting as she felt breath return to her lungs.

He crossed his arms and laughed again. "Besides, you really think I'd be stupid enough to imprison you in Hyrule Castle?"

Between breaths, Zelda looked at him inquisitively. "We're not in Hyrule Castle?"

"Of course not," he replied, his grin widening, almost playful. "We're in a place a bit more... _secluded_. Come, Princess. I'm about to give you a tour of your new home."

"And where is that, exactly?"

Dark Link cackled louder than he had the previous few times. "My mind," he said.


End file.
